


Another Summer Night Without You

by itcrystal



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Abuse of Authority, Alternate Universe - Non-Famous, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Bottom Harry, Bottom Louis, Cheating, Doggy Style, Face Slapping, Jealousy, M/M, Oral Sex, Public Blow Jobs, Public Sex, Riding, Rough Oral Sex, Rough Sex, Slut Shaming, Teacher-Student Relationship, Top Liam, Top Niall Horan, Top Zayn Malik, Verbal Humiliation, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-07
Updated: 2020-09-17
Packaged: 2021-03-04 07:35:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 11
Words: 22,712
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24589939
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/itcrystal/pseuds/itcrystal
Summary: Harry moved from London to small town to have a fresh start. Well, a special person from his past is not really done with him and new ones are coming...
Relationships: Liam Payne/Harry Styles, Liam Payne/Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan/Harry Styles, Zayn Malik/Harry Styles, Zayn Malik/Louis Tomlinson
Comments: 44
Kudos: 116





	1. Chapter 1

Harry dropped two stuffed leather bags on the hardwood floor, adding them to a big pile of various luggage. He was staring at the mess of suitcases, bags and paper boxes in a genuine amazement, because he didn’t really expect to fit this all in his car at once. Eventually, he was glad he made it though. It was Friday night, it was raining as hell, and it most definitely wouldn’t be fun to drive all the way back to London to pick up some remaining stuff. He had to drive a lot slower with his car filled to the roof, but it was worth it. He ran his fingers through his messy curls to tame them back a bit, kicking off his chelsea boots. Fuck, he was so tired. He felt like he hasn’t been doing anything else but packing, running errands and arranging things past couple days and he was absolutely drained. He rubbed his eyes, considering for a second to spend the night unpacking, but he had literally no energy left, so he decided to not to torture himself any further. He’s been in this town for only like two minutes after all. He grabbed a bottle of red wine he brought with him, knowing well no stores will be open at this hour. He cursed when he realized there actually aren’t any glasses or crockery in general, which was quite logical, but he didn’t really think that much ahead. Ending up washing a coffee cup from a gas station, Harry finally dropped down at the window sill seat, exhaling heavily. Leaning against the wall, he took a sip of the dark red liquid, watching fat rain drops hitting the foggy window panes with force. He liked rain, it was calming for him, especially if he could just listen to the sound of it from inside. It sounded different than in London, a lot more prominent, probably because of the lack of countless buildings, constant noise and crazy traffic. This place was so quiet Harry found that almost scary for a moment. Rustling of trees was the only sound he could hear, there wasn’t a single car on the street, not even a single person. Normally, he would probably already doubt his decision to move there, but at this point, he didn’t have the capacity to do it. He just sat there, staring at the rain, until his provisional wine cup got empty. He shivered a little. It was beginning of May, so technically, there was no need to heat up apartments anymore, but damn, this place was cold. The owner said no one stayed there for over a year, so that was very likely the reason. It took Harry a good 20 minutes to figure out how to turn on the heater, wondering if he was genuinely that dumb or if this thing was just stupid. Wearing a hoodie and pair of black boxers, he crushed onto a bed, which was completely stripped of beddings, but he couldn’t care less, pulling over himself a blanket from his car.

Half awake, Harry glanced at the time on the screen of his phone, ignoring a long line of messages on Whatsapp. He knew they all came just from one and only person. It was 6 AM and he thought he probably never slept this hard in his life. Getting up from the bed, he slowly made his way to the kitchen, to pour himself some water. The sun was up and it was actually quite bright, compared to the little monsoon last night. He looked around, realizing this is the very first time he sees his new home properly and in a daylight. He was there once in March, right after the job interview, but it was already pretty dark and he didn’t have enough time to look around, not even sure he’d eventually end up moving in back then. He didn’t visit any other places, because this one just felt right, and Harry was always very intuitive. Yes, the apartment was small, but on the other hand, it was enough for him and he could afford it, which was honestly the main question while searching online for available flats for rent. Harry liked the raw rustic style of this place. The rough dark wooden floor, exposed bricks, heavy beams, old fireplace, big windows…It was basically just a one big room, divided by some random half walls and little corners. There was a white wooden kitchen, with massive table which dominated the area, surrounded by mismatched chairs, some leather ones, some upholstered ones, some of them just plain basic ones. Just a few steps away was the living room space with a big dark brown velvet couch, blue suede armchair, low coffee table, book cabinet, fireplace and a flat screen TV which was probably the only thing which looked brand new and modern here. There were some random cabinets and drawers, with lamps and vases on it along the way to the bedroom space, which was simply a huge king size bed with two small night stands, divided by a half wall from the rest of the apartment to provide some privacy. Two doors on the right side, one of them leading to the bathroom and the second one to the closet, which was surprisingly spacious for such a small flat. Harry was happy about it, because most of his possession was just clothes, he loved shopping and he loved to search for vintage pieces. He owned a few real gems, such as vintage Dior leather jacket, Burberry coat, Versace shirt…everything found at London second hands.  
Harry concluded he needed a coffee before doing anything, then grocery, then some household goods. He stopped his car in front of a first coffee shop he spotted, not really being picky at this point, most of the little cafes looked the same anyway. Waiting for his order, his phone vibrated in his back pocket. Fuck. He knew he wouldn’t stop. Exhaling sharply, he stepped aside and accepted the call eventually. 

“Hi”. 

“You’re okay? You didn’t text back or call, I was worried about you”. 

“I’m fine, was just tired yesterday. Didn’t really check my phone. Besides…you don’t have to worry about me, you know? Or care, or anything”.

Harry bit his lip at the silence. He didn’t want to sound like a bitch, but he needed him to understand. 

“Look…I get it, okay? You don’t have to remind me we’ve broken up and everything, but Harry…that doesn’t mean I’d stop care about you in a finger snap, you can’t expect that from me, not after all those years. Did you already forget about everything?” 

The curly boy threw his head back slightly. 

“Of course I didin’t. But I think conversations like this are only making this whole thing harder”. 

“I just want to know if you’re alright, I’m not trying anything. You made yourself clear about us”. 

“I’m doing fine, only looking around now, not much really happened since I’ve arrived yesterday”. 

“Don’t you need anything? I don’t know, some home stuff or something?”

“I’m just on my way to buy some, but thanks, I appreciate that. I…I have to go now, my coffee’s ready so…thank you for calling”. 

Shit, that was awkward. 

“Okay…take care of yourself Harry”. 

“You too. Bye”.

He put his phone down with a little heavy heart. He knew how much he was hurting him by acting so distant and he felt shitty for doing that, because the boy didn’t deserve it. He was always by his side. Through the good times and the bad ones. He was holding Harry above the water during ever single day of the last nightmare of a year, he never quit no matter how unbearable Harry was. He picked him up from the bottom every time and Harry would swear on his life he never met anyone so selfless and patient. Breaking up with him was the second hardest thing he’s ever done, and it was very first time he saw him crying. The way he was looking at Harry in complete disbelief will probably haunt him for the rest of his days. Seeing him like this, utterly ruined and heartbroken was forcing Harry to think if he was making the right decision, but he managed to not to back off. He needed to do it. Of course, he still cared for him, his mind wandered to him probably every day, but he knew he had to focus on himself now. Jesus, he was supposed to let things go by moving here, not to think of them since day one. 

He needed to keep his mind busy, so he spent the whole day unpacking, organizing his closet and kitchen cabinets. He ended up driving to the houseware store twice that day because he ran out of hangers and naturally forgot some other stuff as well. There was no need to do everything at once, Harry was pretty sure his social life in here will be non-existing, so he’ll have plenty of time to do the work around apartment, but he just got deep into it. It was 9 PM when he finally sat down on a couch, totally exhausted and hungry. He was nowhere near the mood to cook, and he was already starving way too much to order something, so he only threw on a washed out black hoodie and a pair of ripped jeans, heading out of the door to the little shop around the corner. The selection wasn’t impressive, but Harry didn’t really care, grabbing some random frozen pizza, bag of an onion crisps and a bottle of white wine, making his way towards the cash register. There was quite a queue, maybe because the store was about to close soon.

“I’m on my fucking way, calm down”. 

Harry raised his head at the sharp voice, which was coming from a boy standing in a queue right in front of him. He was on his phone, before eventually hanging up and shoving it inside his back pocket. Harry could only see him from a profile, but even this side view made his jaw drop. No like was exactly judging, but he sort of expected a bunch of rednecks in this sleepy hollow, not a face like this. He was literally pretty, not just handsome. Pretty. His skin was tanned, clearly because of his origin, his hair jet black, high cheekbones, couple days beard, tattoos on the back of his neck, and also peeking from rolled out sleeves of his black denim jacket. He had some tight black jeans on, along with a pair of leather boots, which looked like Dr. Martens and well, Harry could only think about the fact he looked like shit himself. The hoodie he had on was million years old, his hair messily tamed by a random bandana and probably covered in dust from the closet, because he hasn’t showered yet. Just lovely.

He was shamelessly staring at the boy like he was some damn candy. He was rather petite, a lot smaller than Harry and his frame was thin - the guy was definitely on a skinny side, but it did look good on him. For some reason, it wasn’t making him less of a man or anything, he seemed pretty manly and sharp to Harry. Suddenly, the boy turned around to face Harry, who immediately dropped his gaze, which only made the other boy smirk. He obviously felt Harry’s sight on him, he wasn’t an idiot. 

“Dinner for one?”

Harry looked up from the ground he was pretending to examine, utterly confused.

“What?”

The tanned boy nodded towards the content of Harry’s trolley. 

“Uhm, yeah”. 

“This looks a bit more fun don’t you think?”

The boy pointed at his own purchase, more precisely at two bottles of gin, two bottles of Jack Daniels and some lemons. 

“I guess”. 

“Wanna join?”

Harry was kinda taken back by the directness of the boy.

“Have a plan already”. 

“Enjoy then”. 

He shrugged casually, not like he really cared, turning his back to Harry to pay for his liquor. Not like Harry expected him to be shaken by his rejection, this one probably had five like Harry already waiting for him somewhere.

Feeling like a whole new person after having his meal and a hot shower, Harry set his alarm for tomorrow morning. It was a bit strange to have to wake up on time on Sunday, but his boss wanted to show him around before it gets too busy on Monday. Harry was okay with that. He was always quite humbled when it came to jobs, he didn’t really take anything for granted. Before he could close his phone, new message appeared on the screen. 

“Good night Harry. Another one without you”. 

*Happy to be back after a few weeks break loves <3 Hope you will like this one


	2. Chapter 2

Switching the alarm off for the third time, Harry rolled onto his stomach and buried his face into the pillow. He somehow managed to put on the sheets last night, probably a little hyped on the bottle of cheap wine he drank. He didn’t feel like getting up at all, feeling so damn exhausted after all day of unpacking and cleaning and driving around the town like crazy to get the necessities. It was the perfect Sunday for staying at home, a bit gloomy and chill and Harry craved nothing else but cheese toasts and Netflix in bed. Fuck, meeting at 11 AM seemed like a plenty of time to get properly ready, but only if he managed to get on his feet sooner than a few minutes after 10 AM. He met his boss before, at the interview, so he wasn’t exactly under the pressure to make a good first impression, but still, he was a newbie. He was brushing his teeth in closet, browsing through his clothes until he picked up a simple black long sleeve shirt, pair of light washed ripped jeans and black trainers. He was starving, but he didn’t really have the time to have anything, except of a glass of an orange juice, which he downed at the door so quickly he almost choked on the liquid. One of the positives about this town was the traffic, which was an absolute dream, compared to rushed and crazy London. No one even bothered to go over the speed limit, because everything was literally ten minutes away from any spot. Harry parked his car in front of a café at the very end of the street. It was bigger than most of the tiny coffee shops here, not huge, but quite spacious. There was a long bar alongside the window wall, with high thin chairs and about ten tables in the inner area. The style of the place was kind of urban, everything was simple and sleek. Dark wood, black metal tables and chairs, couple of vintage looking pictures framed on a crispy white wall, flashbulbs on long cables hanging from the ceiling instead of a chandelier. It was maybe a little dark, but not in a bad way, it was actually quite comforting. Harry stepped in, hesitatingly looking around. He almost forgot how it looked here, been there just once. Only two tables were occupied at this hour and it didn’t seem busy in general, which was surely the reason his boss decided to meet at this particular time. There was some ash blonde girl behind the counter, currently taking freshly washed cups and glasses out of a dishwasher. She looked up when she saw Harry entering, dropping dishtowel she had in hand.

“What can I offer you?”

“I’m here to see James, actually”. 

“Sure, I’ll go get him. I’ll be right back”. 

Harry didn’t have much time to wander around the space, because a tall man in his fifties appeared behind the blonde in less than a minute. ¨

“Harry! It’s good to see you again”. 

He said with genuine smile on his face, shaking his hand firmly. He was a cheerful man, always in a good mood. It was probably the main reason Harry agreed to take this offer. He liked the family business concept, everyone seemed to be very dedicated to it and they did the smallest things with a great passion. James was the owner taking care of financial and operational matters, his mother and wife were responsible for the delicious cakes and pastry and his son was working behind the bar, sometimes helping his dad with the transportation. 

“First things first, this is Stella. She will be on your shift, please don’t hesitate to ask her anything, she’s been with us for two years, so she knows what to do”. 

“Pleasure meeting you Stella, I’m Harry”. 

The girl was cute, not too tall but on a curvier side, piercing green eyes and long lashes. 

“Have you had breakfast yet?”

James asked and Harry shook his head. 

“I was in a bit of a rush this morning”. 

“Excellent, the blueberry muffins are just out of oven, let’s have a cup of coffee with them. Stella, will you make us two cappuccinos please?”

The blonde nodded, while Harry was following his boss and sat down at a table in the very corner of the room. They didn’t want to disturb other guests with their conversations. 

“How’s everything? Are you settling down?”

Harry nodded. 

“Slowly. Just arrived on a Friday, I’m literally only looking around so far. But everything seems alright, I’m glad about the apartment, exploring the town little by little”. 

“Good. I’m truly happy to hear that. What about…the personal matter? We definitely don’t have to talk about it, I was just wondering if you’re doing better”. 

Harry sighed. 

“It’s okay, really. I know you mean it in a good way, and I realize I was still quite shaken when I came here for the first time in March. It was just few days after the funeral and…it was a hard time”. 

“I’m so sorry Harry, again. I can imagine how insanely painful it must be for you. I hope it will hurt a little less with time”. 

“I force myself to not to think about it too much. I figured soon enough that sitting in my room and staring at the wall won’t change anything, so here I am. I knew if I didn’t get up now, I would never be able to do it”. 

“You are strong man Harry. You probably don’t know too many people here yet, so I want you to know I am here if you needed anything. To help or just talk. You know where to find me”. 

“Thank you, James, I really appreciate that”. 

“You’re welcome. Well, let’s finish those muffins and then I’ll show you the warehouse, the cash register system and some few more you should know before you officially start tomorrow”. 

“Fuck!”

Liam cursed, as his nails dug deep into full ass cheeks of the boy of top of him. 

“That fucking hurts”. 

The younger boy hissed, trying to ease the tight drip of Liam’s hands on his butt, but he didn’t let go. 

“Shut up, you know you like it”. 

He tightened the squeeze even more, leaving dark red fingerprints on the tanned smooth skin. 

“Fuck yourself on that cock, come on”. 

He fucked into the boy roughly from below, making him scream into the silence of the overheated car. They were on a backseat, Liam sitting with his legs spread, pants of his navy suite pooling around his ankles along with his black boxers, blazer thrown over the passenger seat, tightly fitted white shirt fully unbuttoned but still resting on his wide shoulders. The boy who was currently riding his hard penis wasn’t wearing anything at all. He was fully naked, legs shamelessly spread as he was sitting on the older man’s lap, moving his hips back and forth quickly. Liam always wanted him naked. He stripped him of the black tracksuit as soon as he got into the car, which was parked at the edge of the pine forest, hidden by dense trees. It was still foggy and chill in there at this early hour, which ensured them a complete privacy even at such a public place. 

“What if someone comes near?”

Louis whined, clutching the seat behind Liam’s head for support as he was bouncing on him hard. 

“You want that? Wanna get caught riding your teacher’s dick like a little whore?”

Liam smacked his ass harshly, grabbing his hips to move him faster. 

“You like that, don’t you? Getting caught spreading your legs everyday and taking it in your fat ass bare and hard. Fucking slut”. 

Liam could tell the boy was close. Louis was sweating, he could feel little cool drops on his warm body and his usually neatly done hair was a mess, some of them stuck on his forehead. His nipples were stiff and his cock thick and swollen, smearing precum all over his and Liam’s stomach. Liam loved him like that, powerless and vulnerable, driven by lust and passion. He wanted to have him just like that every single day, or even more. He wanted him all the time. Grabbing the underside of Louis’s thighs, he started jabbing into him violently, forcing him to orgasm. The younger boy had tears in his eyes, because the rough abuse of his prostate was too much, Liam was hammering into the little spot with painful precision and Louis couldn’t take it anymore. He emptied himself untouched with a loud cry, all over Liam’s tight abs. The orgasm completely drained him, and he helplessly fell on Liam’s chest like a ragdoll. He was so numb for a couple of seconds he didn’t actually even feel the older stilling his cock and coming deep inside of him. He moaned quietly at the warm wetness in his bum, kissing the older man who was gently fucking the fresh sperm deeper with his slowly softening cock. They were kissing lazily as they both felt the cum leaking mercilessly out of Louis’ fucked out hole. 

“You always relax your hole so nicely when I cream it inside”. 

Louis didn’t say anything, only squirmed a bit to get out of Liam’s embrace. 

“Let go”. 

He murmured, sounding annoyed. 

Liam rolled his yes. Louis always got like that after they were done fucking. He was super affectionate and fond during sex, but as soon as he went down from his height, he acted distant and Liam absolutely hated it. 

“Let’s stay like this for a minute”. 

But Louis wasn’t having it. 

“Will you please let me go?”

The boy snapped sharply, making Liam eventually loose his grip. 

“Stop being a little brat”. 

“I’m not being a fucking brat, just need to get ready for school”. 

“You have plenty of time to get ready”. 

Liam said in an authoritative tone, watching the boy throwing on his joggers, without underwear. 

“Don’t boss me around, we’re not in class yet”. 

“You didn’t mind me bossing you around when you had my cock in your ass”. 

Louis blushed slightly, but didn’t reply, too busy looking for his hoodie in the mess of clothes in the car. 

“Will you come to my office during lunch break today?”

The boy shrugged. 

“Maybe. I don’t know yet”. 

He finished lacing up his trainers and climbed onto the passenger seat, bucking up the belt. Liam sighed. There was literally nothing he could do when Louis was in one of his moods, he already knew better than trying to cheer him up or asking questions. He used to freak out about it a lot when they started seeing each other, but he learned Louis will always come to him. Many times, he snapped at Liam he won’t have time for him or something like that, but appeared at his door just a few hours later, demanding sex. It was obvious Louis still wasn’t 100% comfortable about their relationship and Liam didn’t blame him. He just turned 18 and this all was quite a lot to handle, and it definitely wasn’t easy. They were driving in silence until they got out of the nature and started seeing houses in a walkable distance. Liam stopped the car, turned around to face Louis and grabbed his chin. 

“I promise it won’t always be like that. The hiding and everything. We’ll be good, I swear, just…please hold on a bit longer. I will make it all up to you one day”.

Liam knew he sounded pathetic, because he was repeating the same old promises every single day, but he simply didn’t have anything more to offer. He leaned forward and kissed him, slow and gently. He could feel Louis melt a little under his tender touch, which was exactly what he wanted. He needed to assure himself he still got the power over the boy. 

Louis smiled softly before he finally got out of the car, carefully looking around, making sure there was no one to be seen to expose them. 

“I’ll see you at school”.


	3. Chapter 3

Monday morning was surprisingly busy. Harry took barely two sips of his own coffee, which was now getting cold next to a coffee machine. He was glad he didn’t have to wear a uniform, which was something which truly bothered him at his previous part time job back in London. He always felt super dumb and unattractive wearing one of those stiff, boxy short sleeve shirts. Now he only had a nametag pinned on his black flannel shirt, combined with simple black skinnies and a lot of vintage bracelets. People were coming and leaving, yet the work part wasn’t really that difficult, because they were not nearly as picky as Londoners. Most of them just went for an espresso, cappuccino and latté macchiato to go, some of them picked some sweet pastry as well. 

“It’s always busy from 7am to 9am, once everyone’s at work, it’ll calm down”. 

Stella said, handing Harry another steaming paper cup for waiting customer. 

“It’s okay, really”. 

He smiled at her swiftly. So far, she seemed to be a lovely soul and extremely patient one. Harry felt comfortable around her, even though they’ve known each other very briefly. He turned around for a second just to take a quick sip of his coffee, but sound of the little bell hanging just above the door didn’t let him finish this action. Well, this customer definitely caught his attention. He was tall and well built, most probably working out, judging by the way he looked in his navy suit. It was quite a tight fit, which was very likely intention. The pants were very strait around his thick thighs and noticeable butt and the blazer was hugging his strong arms just right. Harry couldn’t deny the man was handsome. He would surely catch his eyes even on a crowded London street, so he assumed he was one of the few gems in this town. Yeah, that was correct. The table of middle age ladies drinking their iced lattés immediately raised their heads and giggled like teenagers. 

“Flat white to go please”. 

The man said, not even looking up from his phone. 

Harry just nodded, even though Liam couldn’t see it, eyes glued to the screen.

“It will be £2,50”.

Liam eventually looked up as he handed Harry the cash. He stopped his movement for a split second, his sight fixed on Harry, like he was surprised seeing him. 

“You’re new here”. 

“Yes. This is my first day actually”. 

“Well, good luck then. Have a good day”. 

Liam said, grabbing his coffee as he headed towards the door. 

“That was Liam”. 

Stella informed him, with a little smile spread all over her face. 

Harry raised his eyebrow. 

“So?”

“He’s quite a looker, don’t you think?”

Harry smirked. 

“I guess you definitely do. You look like you’d eat him alive”. 

“Oh, I would, trust me. Anytime. But of course, life’s not fair, he’s not into girls”. 

“Is there a chance he’s bi or something? Many people are these days”. 

Stella shook her head, taking a sip of her chai through a straw. 

“He’s not. Dozens of girls tried. His phone is loaded with pictures of “hot mums” whose kids he taches, most of them are married, but they hit on him anyway”. 

“That literally sounds like a cheesy American comedy”.

Stella laughed. 

“Yeah, it kind of does. But he’s always super nice and polite, which in fact makes me even more frustrated”. 

“Some guy is probably lucky to have him”. 

“That’s the weird thing. He’s been single for over a year”.

“Really?”

“Yes, how strange is that? I mean…it’s not so crazy long, but honestly, he doesn’t really have to put too much effort to get himself a boyfriend”. 

“Maybe he just wants to have some time for himself. Not everyone craves to be constantly in a relationship”. 

“That’s possible. There are rumors he’s secretly seeing someone, probably someone who’s like, married or something, because few people saw his car parked in very unusual places such as outside town, close to forest and so but…I don’t know. These are just gossips, people spread them for fun and attention”.

“I guess. You said he’s a teacher, right?”

“Exactly. At local high school”.

Vibration of Harry’s phone interrupted their conversation. 

“I’m sorry”. 

He apologetically looked at the screen before declining the call. 

“You could have picked it up, I mean, you could go to the back and pick it up, it’s totally fine”. 

Harry shook his head. 

“It wasn’t important. I’ll call him later”. 

“Your boyfriend?”

“No…my ex-boyfriend actually. We broke up a few weeks ago”. 

“You guys are still in touch”. 

“Sort of. I’m not the one who initiates it though, because I think it’s just for the worse. We won’t move on if we keep call and text, that’s not gonna work”. 

“Maybe he doesn’t want to move on”. 

Harry sighed. Stella was right, but he didn’t feel like explaining his whole story at this moment. 

“I’ll go get the cheesecake, we’re almost out of it”. 

“Everyone, before you go to your next class, please put your essays on my table”. 

Liam said, closing up his laptop and stretching his arms lightly. Mondays were always the worsts, it was nearly impossible to get the teenagers’ attention after weekend. He was watching his students taking turns at his table, leaving a piece of paper on the wooden desk. He noticed Louis was the only one who hasn’t gotten up from his seat yet. 

“Mr. Tomlinson? Your essay please”. 

Louis bit his lip. 

“I apologize. I forgot to do it”. 

“You forgot to do it? You had a whole weekend to do it”. 

“As I said, I forgot. I’ll bring it tomorrow”. 

“Indeed, you will. Double the amount of words, I will have two pages in Arial number 10 on my desk tomorrow morning”. 

“What? That’s not fair!”

Louis was standing at his table now, apparently upset. The class was already packing up so no one was really paying them much of an attention. 

Liam raised his voice. 

“I think it’s pretty accurate Mr. Tomlinson. You didn’t submit your homework, and logically, there must be consequences. Otherwise it wouldn’t be fair to your classmates. Two pages tomorrow or you’ll get detention”.

“You can’t be fucking serious”. 

Louis was crossing the line and Liam wasn’t having any of it. He stood up quickly from his chair, looking the boy right in the eyes.

“Go back to your seat or I’ll give you the detention right this moment. Did I make myself clear?”

Louis swallowed the urge to fight back. He had a temper, but Liam did too. 

“Yes, sir”. 

He spat, but eventually turned around and got back to his desk, cheeks burning red. The bell rang just on time, the boy was among the first ones who fired out of the class. 

It was nearly 1am when Harry finally got a break. He was starving, literally couldn’t wait to have a lunch. Stella said there was a nice little bistro just a few steps from their café, with really good noon menus. He found it easily and opted for a table outside, because the weather was being quite generous today. He ordered soup of the day and a lemon chicken, feeling like he should have some real food after all that junk crap he’s been eating lately. He took out his phone, staring at the two more missed calls. Jesus…this will never end. He tapped on the last one with a quiet sigh, putting the phone on his ear. 

“Harry, thanks for calling back”. 

“Well, what’s going on?”

“How’s your first day at work?”. 

“Fine. It’s fine”.

“Busy?”

“In the morning yes, but not too insane”. 

Harry chewed on his lip. He didn’t want to feed the conversation, but he felt bad for being so cold at the same time. 

“What about you? All good?”

“Yeah, I guess. The work’s been crazy those few weeks, we’ve been finalizing this big case so…it’s been pretty intense in the office”. 

“You should get some rest”. 

“Actually, I will have a couple days off soon and I was thinking I could maybe visit you. What are you saying?”

Harry rubbed his eyes. 

“I honestly don’t think it’s a good idea”. 

“Why?”

“Why? Are seriously asking why?”

“We don’t have to do anything, just hanging out. Friendly visit, nothing more”. 

Harry already knew the boy didn’t mean a single word he said. He knew he will never be able just to hang out with him, he didn’t have to try to be sure of it. 

“I’ll think about it”. 

He wasn’t in the mood to argue, it would be like talking to a wall. 

“Please. I swear we wouldn’t do anything you wouldn’t want”.

“Look, I need to go. I’m on a lunch break and my food just arrived, I need to hurry up”. 

“Sure…look, I just want you to know that I’m not forcing you into anything. You can just tell me no, it’s really up to you. No matter how much I hate us not being together…it’s not my intention to make you feel uncomfortable”. 

“I know, I just…give me some time to think this through”. 

“Of course. It’s not a big deal Harry, I just want to see a place where you live now”. 

They hung up and Harry couldn’t help himself but actually felt uncomfortable and sort of forced into things. He dug the fork into his meal and regretted he had a few more hours of work ahead of him, because he would definitely welcome a glass of wine. He always felt shitty after those phone calls.

“What the fuck was that?”

Louis stormed into Liam’s office without even knocking, slamming the door behind him loudly, locking them up. Liam looked up from his iPad, adjusting his glasses he was wearing time to time for reading. There was an unfinished turkey sandwich and a bad of crisps on the table in front of him, Louis caught him in the middle of his lunch. 

“What are you talking about?”

“What am I talking about? What about the fact you humiliated me in front of a class over some fucking stupid essay?”

Liam eventually put the iPad on the desk and took his glasses off. 

“What exactly did you expect me to do? I was just following the rules, that’s it. I would proceed the same way with any other student”. 

“Oh really? Are you fucking any other students too?”

The older stood up slowly, crossing his arms over his broad chest. 

“I believe we talked about this multiple times Louis. At class, you are my student and I will treat you exactly the same as all of your classmates. I can not possibly privilege you anyway, people would notice and get suspicious. You are not a straight A student, they would wonder why you’re getting a special treatment. What we do in private, is completely different story”. 

“That’s bullshit Liam. You could have easily just told me to bring it tomorrow and let it go, but no. You just fucking have to put me in place all the time”. 

“I think you’re overreacting. Make sure to do your homework next time and we won’t have to have this conversation again”. 

The boy was fuming. Liam was acting so calmly it was driving him insane. 

“Fuck you Liam. Hypocrite much? You’ve been fucking me regularly since I was underage and now, you’re educating me about homework? How pathetic is that”.

Liam took a few steps closer to the boy, almost closing the gap between them. The choice of Louis’ words was very sensitive, because it always got under Liam’s skin a little when he mentioned they started their relationship when the boy wasn’t legal. For obvious reasons, Liam felt nervous about it. 

“I fucking told you to not to mix what we do in bed with school matters. We agreed on that at the very beginning. And if I remember correctly, you were the one who started texting me, hm? Isn’t that right? Or don’t you remember sending me all those nasty pictures of yours? Seducing me like a slut until you made me fuck you in the locker room, condom free?”

“That’s not my point”.

“What is it then?”

“I…all I am asking for is just a little extra attention. How am I supposed to feel when you act like that?”

“Act like what?”

“You always ignore me at school, you barely look at me during the classes”. 

Liam rolled his eyes. 

“Louis, be reasonable for the Christ’s sake. I can’t show you affection at school, it’s not possible. People have eyes on you and me anyway and they start gossips out of absolutely nothing, you know this town damn well. It’s actually quite a miracle no one has figured out about us yet”. 

“I’m sick of not to be able to even call you by your first name in public”. 

“Babe…I wish I could give you what you want, but I can’t now”.

“I’m also sick of keep hearing this”. 

*I guess you can already tell who's Harry's clingy ex boyfriend :-)


	4. Chapter 4

Tuesday evening and there was nothing Harry was craving more than wine and crispy bedsheets. The work in general wasn’t exactly difficult or too exhausting, but since he’s just started, he had to learn a lot every day. Also, the good weather naturally brought more customers, especially once they put outside little tables with chairs and umbrellas. Even though they didn’t have to service the outside area, it was definitely an extra work to keep it clean. He stopped his car at local gas station, making a mental note he has to go for a proper grocery shopping tomorrow, because he realized he was just about to have boxed pizza for third night in a row. His memory wandered back to the days Niall used to cook for him almost every single evening. He used to come home around 8PM, tired and worn out, working his ass off as a trainee at the law company, patiently bowing his head and doing all the shitty paperwork and coffee runs, until he finally got a proper job there few months ago. No matter how drained he must have been, he was never moody or lousy towards Harry. He always put a smile on his face and asked Harry about his day, cooking dinner in between all of this and managing to reply late emails at the same time. Niall was a hard worker and he never complained about it. It was basically a miracle, but he also had an energy to fuck Harry regularly almost every night, missing out only when one of them wasn’t home. Sex with Niall was the most natural and comfortable act Harry has experienced. They’ve known each other since forever and he knew for a fact that Niall has never been with anyone else. He was a virgin when he met Harry as 16 years old and they slept together for the first time shortly before Niall’s 17th birthday. Harry was slightly more experienced back then, but his real sex life started with the blonde. They trusted each other completely and they were slowly growing up into men side by side, sharing everything. They broke up twice. The first time, just for a few weeks, after Niall got jealous over one of Harry’s new friends and basically asked him to choose between them in a heated row. The second time was worse. It was during their first year on college. Niall went to law school and Harry opted for literature, which was quite a problem itself, because Niall’s uni wasn’t directly in London and the amount of studying didn’t allow him to see Harry too often. Niall was absolutely frustrated, buried in books, checking in between the lectures Harry’s posts on social medias, usually from bars or house parties with his new classmates. He could see it coming, when Harry showed up at his dorm one May evening, telling him this long distance thing was not working for him, telling him he needed space. There was nothing Niall could do about it, except giving Harry the desired freedom, even though he was literally dying inside. For his remaining mental health’s sake, he forced himself to block Harry on Facebook and Instagram. He knew why. Harry spent the whole Summer partying, going on roadtrips and sleeping around with a guy or two. He was living his best life, until the nights got colder, and September came. Suddenly, getting drunk every night and talking nonsense until 6AM, in a room full of trashed people and a weed smoke, didn’t feel that fun anymore. He started missing the comfort zone he used to have with Niall, he started missing being with someone who actually cared. His hands were shaking when he called the blonde for the first time after 4 moths of no contact at all. He was scared Niall won’t want him back, already with someone else, having this chapter of his life closed. At first, Niall was considering to play hard to get, just to make Harry taste his own medicine, but when he saw him on his doorstep, on October 1st, clothes drenched from the pouring rain, he couldn’t even think and just kissed him hard. They never talked about this time apart, Harry only told Niall he hasn’t slept with anyone else during that phase. He wasn’t sure if the boy actually believed him, but he acted like he did. Harry quit hanging out with his classmates and used all of this saved time to visit Niall, making their meetings a lot more frequent. He was lucky enough to have quite convenient school schedule, so he could leave from London on Thursday afternoon and be with Niall until Sunday evening, sometimes even Monday morning, driving straight to school. They spent a lot of time fucking, Niall didn’t have a roommate, so they had the whole place for themselves and they sometimes fucked even three times a day, because they were perfectly synchronized. Niall let Harry top only once and Harry could clearly tell he didn’t enjoy it at all. He was stiff and wooden the whole time, gritting his teeth and facing away so Harry couldn’t see his expression. He wasn’t even hard when Harry was done, which was a complete turn off and Harry never asked him to do it again. Harry liked bottoming, but well, it would probably help a little to switch with Niall time to time, because especially after having sex several times a day, it felt a bit too much. They’ve been together through everything. High school, first sex, long distance relationship, college, jealousy, break-ups, make-outs, first jobs, money issues, first apartment, adult life. 

Harry threw his head back, because he was pretty positive, he could feel tears sting in his eyes. Jesus. Those sentimental moments were very dangerous, and he was quite sure he would probably text him if he already had a couple of glasses in his system. He needed to distract himself from these thoughts, so he entered the shop quickly, taking direction towards the wine isle first. He froze for a second when he spotted a familiar figure, holding one bottle in each hand, carefully reading the labels. Liam looked a lot different without his fitted suit, polished shoes and nicely done hair. He was wearing a black Adidas hoodie, pair of matching sweatpants and trainers. Harry could tell he was probably after a workout because his cheeks were noticeably flushed, and hair still wet from the shower. He looked good though. Exactly the type bored elegant housewives drool over. Harry could imagine how demanded goods he must have been in this little town. Suddenly, Liam turned around, apparently made a decision about his wine for the night and slightly bumped into Harry, who was standing right behind him. 

“Oh, I’m sorry, didn’t see you”. 

He apologized quickly, locking his eyes with Harry’s for a split second. The boy shook his head. 

“It’s okay”. 

His gaze dropped on the bottle in Liam’s hand. 

“Is this one any good?”

Liam smiled lightly. 

“Well, considering the fact we’re shopping for wine at a gas station, I assume we don’t exactly have an expensive taste. It’s drinkable, let’s put it that way”. 

Harry smiled too and took the same bottle from the shelf. 

“Perfect, sounds like it’ll go with the frozen pizza just fine. Thanks for the recommendation”. 

“You’re welcome…you work in the café, don’t you? The new one”. 

“Yeah, that’s me”. 

“How do you like it so far?”

Harry shrugged. 

“I’m still learning, but so far so good. Haven’t received any complaints yet, so I guess I’m not completely useless”. 

Liam grinned. 

“Okay. I better go, gym killed me today. See you tomorrow, I guess. Have a good evening, hope you won’t hate the wine too much”. 

“I won’t, I promise”. 

With that, Liam disappeared between the racks, heading towards the cash desk. Harry bit his inner cheek. Stella was right about Liam being polite and charming, it was surprisingly easy to talk to him, even though Harry didn’t really plan to start a conversation with him. He glanced through the big window, watching Liam getting into his black Range Rover, which looked brand new. Harry raised his eyebrow. Teachers were apparently paid highly above standards here. As the man drove away, Harry was quick with his purchase. He decided to be creative and grabbed a pack of lasagna instead of pizza, adding a bag of Maltesers into his basket. He was about to have short shift tomorrow, only from 6:30 to 11:30 and he promised himself to hit the local mall right after work. He wanted to read a little before falling asleep, but he passed out completely with his bedside light on, right after finishing his dinner in bed. 

Liam impatiently tapped on the steering wheel, checking time on his phone for about the tenth time. He looked around, but the place seemed to be absolutely dead, not a soul to be seen. Since Louis hasn’t been replying his messages the whole morning, he decided to call him. After countless rings, when Liam almost decided to end the call, the boy finally picked up. 

“What?”

“What do you mean what? Where are you?”

“At home. Just woke up”. 

“Did you…oversleep or something?”

“No”. 

“What’s the matter Louis? I've sent you like 15 messages”

“I told you yesterday, didn’t I? I’m tired of this”. 

“Babe, I know, but we have those days time to time, you know you don’t really mean it”. 

“How the hell do you know what I mean or not? Yeah, I know I always crawled back to you after “those days”, but I’m seriously not feeling it right now”. 

“Louis…I’m trying. I swear I am”. 

“You’re not trying enough”. 

The boy replied calmly which made Liam clench his fingers around the phone until his knuckles went white. 

“What exactly are you expecting of me? I’m risking my job, my whole career, my reputation! Do you even realize how much I could loose for this? Fucking everything”. 

“Oh please. Don’t act like you depend on your teacher’s salary”. 

“That’s not the damn point Louis, I’m not talking about money. Try to look at it from my perspective, if someone found out, I would be the bad guy and you would be the victim. They could sue me for what we’re doing, this is serious Louis”. 

“I’m 18, I’m an adult”. 

“They would still call it an abuse of power from my side. I’m your teacher, haven’t you heard about any cases like this? They’d insist I manipulated you of forced you into a sexual relationship from my position”. 

“Look, I know it’s not easy for you, but so it isn’t for me. I’m sick of sneaking out at 6AM, pretending I’m going jogging and getting fucked on a backseat of your car, it’s just not enough for me anymore”. 

“Louis…you know how much I care about you”. 

“Show me then”. 

“I can’t! Jesus, you know damn well I can’t. Trust me, I would love to take you to dinners and all the stuff normal couples do, but I’m not able to do it yet. Please, try to understand”. 

“I understand, but I don’t want it”. 

Liam exhaled. Louis was sharp and bitchy. The boy could be sweet and amazing, but he could also be mean and nasty if he wanted to. 

“What do you want then? You want us to stop seeing each other?”

“Yeah, I guess”. 

“As you wish. We’re done”.

Liam furiously threw his phone onto the passenger seat. His pride kicked in and he refused to be handled by a spoiled teenager.

*I'm actually feeling a little bad for Niall now, he loves Harry so much :(


	5. Chapter 5

Niall turned on the lights as he walked into his apartment in Chelsea. It was a lot different level than the old apartment in East London he used to share with Harry, when they both got out of college. It was super old fashion and quite vacated, but damn, he could remember the moment they got the keys like it was yesterday. They were so happy. It was their home. Their first real home. They were jumping on the creaky bed in the only bedroom and eating take away on the floor, because there was no table in the kitchen. It took them some time to make that place look somehow decent, but they always felt cozy and comfortable here, no matter the rusty windows and view into an opposite wall. Those memories were bittersweet. They were so young and excited, full of energy and more than ready for their life together. Niall knew he was the one who loved more. He was okay with that. Harry loved him too and it was pretty enough for him. The problem is, that sometimes, when you love more, you keep living in a fear the person will eventually leave you, because you know it would never come from your side. Niall would never leave Harry, never in a million years. He could see through his little lies, like when he said he hasn’t been with anyone else while they were broken up. He knew Harry slept around with a few guys, but he would rather bite his tongue than to talk about it. He even refused to think about it. The image of Harry in bed with someone else was his worst nightmare and he decided to not to torture himself and simply pretended he believed everything Harry said. 

He loosened up his tie and sat down on the white leather couch, turning on big flat screen TV. Throwing his blazer over a barstool in the kitchen, he grabbed a bottle of beer from the American style fridge and switched the channel to football. He glanced at clock on microwave. 9:15 PM. It’s been impossible to get out of his office before 8PM lately and some evenings were even worse. He dropped back onto the sofa, taking a gulp from the bottle before opening an Uber Eats app on his phone. He was craving something really bad, such as mac ‘n’ cheese and a garlic bread, but damn, he hasn’t put a foot in gym for weeks and he was aware of the fact he was tend to get a belly. Well, not like he exactly had someone to be fit for, but still. He breathed out in slight disappointment as he chose salmon with grilled vegetable and herb roasted baby potatoes. Every day was the same. Getting up at 7:00AM, putting on his suit, grabbing coffee and breakfast on the way to be in the office at 9:00AM. Meetings, papers, more meetings. Quick lunch, usually brought by his assistant in a paper bag, couple more espressos and finishing around 8PM, completely drained. He didn’t even remember when he used the cooker in his apartment for the last time. He loved cooking and he was pretty good at it, but with his busy schedule, he was just too tired to do the grocery shopping and the actual cooking. He terribly missed those nights he cooked for him and Harry, drinking wine and joking around, talking about the daily problems they had. He didn’t have the good money he had now, he couldn’t control most of the stuff in his apartment via iPad, but shit…those were the happiest moments of his life. He wasn’t anywhere near being over Harry and he honestly doubted it was even possible for him. He knew he acted desperate. He could almost physically feel the awkwardness in each phone call but hearing Harry’s voice was worth it. He threw his head back. Fuck, there was no way to be more embarrassing than this, but he just couldn’t stop thinking about him. 

He never felt more empty than the day Harry broke up with him, for good this time. Their relationship wasn’t perfect at the time, but Niall found it as quite normal, considering the circumstances. He finally got a real job at the law company and his days got even busier than before. He became a proper lawyer, he got a nice glass office in an upper floor and an assistant, and he was so fucking proud of himself, because yes, he worked his ass off to get there. He was trying his best to keep up with Harry, but the time he spent at home became very limited. Harry didn’t say anything, but he obviously noticed. Niall was coming home late, exhausted and worn off. They exchanged a few sentences before he passed out on the sofa, sex not even a topic. They stopped sleeping together as much as they used to, they mostly fucked just during the weekends, not more than once a day. They still deeply cared about each other, but it apparently wasn’t the same and they were slowly drifting apart. While Niall was making his way to the top, Harry wasn’t in the best phase of his life. He lost his job at the lifestyle magazine, which hit him quite hard. He was struggling to find another one, mainly because he felt unmotivated. However, Niall didn’t say a word. He was covering majority of costs for both of them, because he wanted to give Harry the time to put himself together. This all wasn’t easy itself, but then came the biggest shock. In February, Harry’s sister passed away. The road was covered with frost and it was snowing heavily. She lost control and her car hit the crash barriers. It was fatal for her. Harry was absolutely broken, he couldn’t accept the fact she was gone. They were very close, and he felt completely and utterly lost. It was the last straw for their already cracked relationship. Harry needed to get away, he was going crazy in London, because every single thing reminded him of her. Niall was doing everything he possibly could to help Harry and save them, but it was all vain. He took days off just to be at home and hold Harry’s hand, to take care of all the things in the house, but none of it seemed to work. Harry felt numb and empty, he didn’t want to talk about anything and the distance between them was growing rapidly. Niall tried to keep himself calm, hoping things will get better with time, understanding how hard if must have been for Harry to tragically lose a family member. He didn’t know Harry was already planning his getaway, searching for a job and an apartment in a small city two hours drive from London. It wasn’t completely random place, when Harry was younger, they used to drive through this town few times a year on their way to visit his aunt and they always stopped there for coffee or lunch. And Harry always said himself how calm and peaceful it was there. Niall felt entirely betrayed when Harry dropped this bomb on him, not knowing what was worse, the breakup itself or the fact Harry basically arranged his whole life behind his back. Harry said to him he had to do it this way, because he wouldn’t be strong enough to leave if he told Niall in advance. He knew Niall would to anything in this world to make him stay. It’s crazy how you spent years and years with someone, loving each other and suddenly, that person stands in front of you, telling you he’s leaving, like none of those years and memories ever happened. Watching Harry go and unable to do anything about that was the hardest thing in Niall’s life. 

He started going to a bar near his office, many people from their building went there after work. He drank gin after gin until he stopped caring about the recent events too much for a little while. Niall never actually found himself significantly attractive or charismatic, but many people did. He met this guy, Luke, who was quite nice. He was a bit younger than Niall, working as a fitness trainer, cute face and ripped body. Everyone on Niall’s place would most definitely go for it, the boy was pretty, young and he seemed ready for some fun when he said his place was just a few blocks away. Niall was aware he was just throwing away a couple of nights of really good sex with a hot boy, but he simply couldn’t do it. Not like he didn’t want sex, Jesus, he did. He and Harry didn’t sleep together for over two months before they officially separated and he was desperate for a fuck, but not with just anyone. Some mornings he woke up sweaty and horny, with his cock hard between his thighs, jerking off to an image of fucking Harry, until he came all over his hand and belly. He didn’t want to start seeing someone new though, because it wouldn’t be fair to that person. His mind was always on Harry, so it would be completely pointless to rush into a new relationship, he wasn’t ready at all. 

He remembered how they fucked in every single corner of their old apartment. When it came to sex life, they were literally made for each other. Everything clicked there, they both wanted the same things, they had the same sex drive. They wanted it often, they were needy and horny. Many times was Niall late for school or work, simply because the quick morning blowjob turned into fucking. They always said they’ll just swiftly blow of jerk off each other, but they usually got carried away in the process and suddenly, he was fingering Harry with three fingers and right after that, Harry was riding him hard and shamelessly. They were always very open and never felt embarrassed to talk about sex and their needs. Only one time Niall got uncomfortable. He didn’t like bottoming, he actually quite hated it, but he did like having a finger in his ass, preferably pushing against his prostate. He never told Harry, because it just felt weird and he didn’t want to discuss it with him, until that one day Harry actually caught him fingering himself in a shower. He stayed and demanded to talk. They ended up sitting on a bathroom floor for half an hour and Naill opened even this Pandora’s box. Harry made it all feel normal and natural and Niall was so relieved. Harry followed him to the bedroom, but before he got a chance to dress up, Harry threw his towel away, leaving him completely naked, pushing him onto the bed. He spread his legs and quickly pushed a wet finger inside him, knowing he was still open. Niall was blushing like crazy and even tried to close his legs, but Harry found his prostate soon enough, so his thighs just fell apart completely, as the boy was gently massaging the little bundle of nerves. Niall was moaning loudly, pushing himself further onto the finger, riding the single digit hard. He didn’t last more than four minutes, especially when Harry took him in mouth. That was it for him and he filled Harry’s mouth with warm thick liquid. 

He blinked, getting back reality when his phone announced arrival of his order. He rubbed his eyes. He missed everything about Harry. The good. And the bad.


	6. Chapter 6

Liam rubbed his eyes before he got out of the car. He was trying his best to put on his usual happy face, because he just hated not being put together for the public. No matter how shitty he felt inside, he never let anyone see. He was pissed at Louis for his selfish and super childish behavior, but he knew he needed to calm down and compose himself, especially since he was going to see him in a class today. He exhaled as he shoved the car key in his pocket and walked into the cafe. It was pretty busy here, as usual at this pre-work hour. He spotted Harry brushing the brown curls off of his face as he was handing an elderly lady her order. Liam joined the queue, so he had quite some spare time to look Harry’s way. The boy was effortlessly handsome, he didn’t really try hard and he didn’t seem to care about it at all. His unruly hair, mismatched bangles on his wrists, washed out black t-shirt with rolled sleeves and a pair of skinnies. Liam could see a big tattoo on the boy’s chest, because of the low neckline. Harry had other smaller tattoos all over his arms and hands, even on his fingers. He was so much different compared to Louis, who was always obsessing over his appearance. Well, Louis looked good, obviously, yet it was a bit annoying. 

“Early bird today”. 

Harry smiled as he pressed flat white on the cash register. 

“Something like that. I’ll take it for here actually”. 

Liam said, taking out his credit card. The boy just nodded, turning to Stella to help her out at the coffee machine. 

“There you go, enjoy”. 

“Thank you. Harry, right?”

“Yes, it’s Harry”. 

Liam was just about to leave when Harry spoke up again. 

“The wine was quite good, actually”. 

Liam smiled at the ground a little. 

“Glad to hear that Harry. There’s a nice wine shop by the way, it’s called Wine o’clock, google it. It case you felt a bit more you know, classy”. 

Stella coughed, gently pointing out at the growing line of people waiting for their morning batch of caffeine. 

“Thank you, I’ll definitely look it up”. 

“Have a good day Harry”. 

“You too”. 

Liam took his coffee to the bar alongside the window and Harry didn’t really see him leaving later. It finally got calmer around 9:00 and both him and Stella could sit down for a bit, sipping on their own already cold coffees. 

“Well, what about that little chit chat with Liam the hottie?”

Harry raised his eyebrow. 

“What about that?”

“Seriously? I’m waiting for the details Harry. How you two did even get to know each other?”

“It’s not a big deal, we just bumped into each other at the gas station yesterday evening, we were both shopping for some wine. We talked a little, that’s it”.

“Impressive. You’ve been there for like five seconds and already flirting with Liam”. 

Harry shook his head. 

“It’s not like that Stella, really. He’s just being polite and honestly, the last I think of now is rushing into a new relationship”. 

“Who talks about a relationship? A little hook up never hurt anyone”. 

“It’s not my thing. I had one night stands, but they don’t do it for me. Maybe it’s silly, but I need some sort of connection with that person. It doesn’t feel comfortable to me, sleeping with random guys”. 

“It’s not silly, I actually think it’s very reasonable”. 

“I’m not saying Liam’s not good looking, well he obviously is, but…my head is somewhere else now”. 

“You can’t speed up the process Harry. Everyone needs a different amount of time and no amount is wrong. Once you’re ready for something new, you’ll know it”. 

“I guess…by the way, you said Liam is a teacher, right?”

“Yeah, he is. Why?”

“It’s nothing, I just noticed he drives a new Rover, which is not exactly usual for a normal teacher”. 

“Oh, it’s not. Liam’s family is pretty loaded, and majority of his money comes from this source”. 

“Really?”

“His mom inherited few tenement houses in London, from some distant family member. They’re renting them, you know, there are offices, flats…one of them is a hotel I believe. They’re making pretty good cash out of it”. 

“I can imagine. Liam seems pretty grounded though”. 

“He is. He’s always been down to earth. I mean he does wear expensive watches or drive a good car, but he’s totally normal, he doesn’t throw out money for nonsense”. 

“It’s kind of interesting he stayed in this town. He could live somewhere…you know, more fancy, with his options”. 

“His parents actually did that, they moved to Spain, Marbella I think. They bought a house there, doing nothing, just enjoying life. But Liam always wanted to stay there, I don’t know why, maybe some emotional bond. He visits his parents several times a year or he goes on a nice holiday, but in general, he seems happy with the life he has here. He rarely talks about the family business, he never wanted to be privileged based on a fact his parents got lucky”. 

“He seems like a decent guy”. 

“Quite a catch, isn’t he?”

Stella blinked at him with a smirk, getting up from her chair. 

Liam had to fight the urge to roll his eyes as he entered the class. Louis was sitting on top of one of the desks, giggling unnaturally loud at some joke the guy in front of him said. Liam couldn’t have been bothered by this, it was typical Louis. They boy was an attention seeker, always craved to have the limelight and his behavior was notoriously predictable. Every time he had a fight with Liam, he showed up at school the next day, wearing the tightest pair of jeans he owned, shamelessly flirting with whoever got in his way, just for Liam to see. He didn’t really get the fact Liam wasn’t a teenager anymore and he was long over this fake drama. He was a bit jealous, because well, Louis was handsome, all tanned and curvy, yet he never really flinched. He had his dignity and he never supported Louis’ bratty behavior. Today, he even decided to ignore Louis, who was obviously texting someone under the desk during majority of the lesson. He just didn’t feel like dealing with him, he wasn’t in the mood for anything difficult. 

He was quite relieved seeing students leaving after the end of the class, well until he noticed everyone’s gone except Louis. The boy was standing at the door, reaching for handle to close them. 

“Keep them open”. 

Liam said calmly, gathering his things from the table. 

“Come on, it’s not a big deal”. 

“I said leave them open, it’s a school policy”. 

Louis rolled his eyes yet let go of the handle. 

“Can I help you with something?” 

Liam finally asked, since the boy just kept standing there. 

“Wanted to talk to you”. 

“This is not the right time Louis, I have another class and above that, I guess our conversation this morning didn’t leave space for any doubts. Now if you excuse me”. 

“Just wanted to make sure you’re okay”. 

Liam raised his eyebrow. 

“I certainly don’t plan to jump off of the bridge but thank you for your concern”. 

“Stop being this bitchy”. 

“What do you actually want from me Louis? Because I don’t think I follow. You broke off things over phone this morning, not even bothering to call first by the way, but that’s fine. I get it, I can’t give you what you want, and I understand you want more. What I don’t understand is, why do YOU look hurt now just because I don’t wish to discuss it any further”. 

“Sorry for fucking caring”. 

“Am I the bad guy now? You should really make up your mind what you want Louis”. 

“I know what I want, I told you this morning”. 

“Then let this go. I where this is gonna go because you do it all the time. You make a mess then start missing the attention and try over. But I’m honestly a little sick of this circle. It’s probably for the best we’re done”. 

Harry shut the trunk of his car, genuinely proud of himself he finally managed to do a proper grocery shopping. Even though he wasn’t too much into cooking, he was kind of looking forward to make himself something which didn’t come from a freezer. He missed those cozy nights with Niall, home cooked dinner, wine a and a bunch of cinnamon scented candles. Niall never liked the smell of them, but he used to buy them anyway, just to make Harry happy. Harry bowed his head. Thoughts of Niall were creeping into his head a lot more often than he would appreciate. He decided to grab a quick espresso at the coffee truck right next to the mall, pulling out pack of his cigarettes.

“You have a lighter?”

Harry turned his head, slightly confused. He didn’t even realize there is someone standing next to him. 

"Mine’s not working”. 

The boy put a tattooed hand with a red lighter in Harry’s face, demonstrating the thing is not gonna lighten up anything, mainly because Harry was just staring at him, like he didn’t understand his question. 

“Um, sure”. 

Harry finally collected himself enough to hand over the lighter. 

“Thanks”. 

The boy simply said, exhaling smoke into air. He glanced at Harry. 

“I’ve seen you, haven’t I?”

And damn, the boy looked even hotter than the first time Harry met him. He beard was more prominent and his hair pulled back, revealing a couple of earrings all over his ear shell. He was wearing a distressed light washed denim shirt and a pair of black skinny jeans. His tan seemed deeper and Harry wanted to slap himself for the staring. 

“Yeah we met at some food shop”. 

“Seems like it’s our destiny”. 

He nodded towards the mall with a light smirk. 

“Anyway, thanks for the lighter”. 

He blinked at Harry as he turned his back to him and casually walked away towards the parking lot. Harry was stunned. He’s never seen anyone this pretty being so effortless. He watched him dropping the cigarette just before he got into his black Volvo SUV. For a second, Harry took back his recent statement about hook ups in his head, because this boy was the first one in a very long time, he could imagine having at least a shameless one night stand with. 

Vision of a day off tomorrow made Harry to pour himself another glass of wine. He knew he will feel those additional glasses in the morning, but he had honestly no plans, so he was sort of okay with the idea of staying in bed all day. He was probably even excited about it, because he couldn’t wait to settle down in here properly. He looked at fairy lights wrapped around a beam in the living room. Jesus, he remembered like they were putting them on with Niall, on so many random places in their old apartment, just to make it a little more homey. He grabbed his phone. He knew he was doing an idiotic thing, but he failed to stop before he sent a message “Miss you”.


	7. Chapter 7

Harry rolled onto his stomach as he buried his face into the crispy white pillow. Yes, he could definitely feel those extra glasses of Pinot Grigio and he grimaced a little at the aftertaste in his mouth. He ended up smoking a few cigarettes in the kitchen, while downing wine and texting with Niall. Jesus, fuck. That was exactly what he planned to avoid. Those lonely, slightly drunken nights were always a killer of the firmest decisions. He grabbed his phone to look at the whatsapp conversation. Well, not like he didn’t remember, he just wanted to see it with sober eyes. He groaned as he pushed the phone back under the pillow. Niall already sent him a good morning message, leaving no doubts about the fact his hopes got pretty high last night. Harry was pissed at himself because this was all so unnecessary. Only if he managed to keep his dirty mouth shut last night, he wouldn’t have to find himself in this situation. Niall brought up the question regarding his possible visit just at the right time. Harry was way too drunk and emotional to say no. The blonde was about to arrive on Friday and Harry no fucking idea how he actually felt about the whole thing. Theoretically, it wasn’t such a big of a deal, he’s been with Niall long enough to know every single little detail about him and vise versa, but that wasn’t the point. He wanted to burn bridges, not to build a damn one for Niall to get back to him. For a second, he was considering coming up with some lame excuse such as he got a cold or something, but he rejected this idea before he could think of it further. Niall didn’t deserve such a bullshit, that was the one thing Harry knew for sure. He got up, knowing he had to clear his mind up a little bit and more importantly air out the cigarette smoke. 

He took a quick shower, putting on a fresh shirt and a pair of an old black basketball shorts. He made himself a cup of coffee, poured milk over cinnamon cereal and brought it all to the living room area. He turned on TV, slowly chewing on his breakfast, letting everything sink in. He still wasn’t too proud of himself for giving blessings to Niall’s visit, yet there was nothing he could do about it now. Maybe, just maybe it won’t be so bad to see him in the end. He did miss him, they spent way too many years together to erase them all in such a short amount of time. He only hoped things will not get too far. 

Liam left the restaurant, carrying big paper bag in one hand, his iPhone, credit card holder and a car key in the other one. He was wearing a simple grey Adidas tracksuit and a pair of white trainers, quickly opening the passenger seat door to place the bag there. 

“Lovely to see you supporting the business”. 

Liam nearly jumped, swiftly turning around to see Zayn leaning against the side door of the restaurant. He was wearing a simple black shirt, revealing most of the tattoos on his hands and arms, and a pair of jeans. His usual look when he was working. 

Liam rolled his eyes. 

“My pleasure”. 

“Come have one with me”. 

Zayn said, pulling a pack of cigarettes out of pocket of his ripped jeans. 

Liam hesitated, but closed the door of his car eventually. 

“Just one. Having a shit day”. 

The tanned boy lightened up one cigarette, handing it to Liam. 

“How come? Did you already dump the little bitch?”

Liam’s pupils went wide as he hissed.

“Can you lower your fucking voice?”

“Jesus, calm down. Not everyone is gaging to know about your dirty little secret. Like, literally”. 

“You think it’s funny?”

“I think it’s hilarious”. 

Zayn assured him, unbothered by Liam’s tone. 

“He was there yesterday”. 

He continued calmly, blowing smoke into the evening air. 

“I don’t care”. 

Zayn smirked. 

“I see I was right about the troubles in paradise. No wonder he was throwing himself at the football guy like a slut he is”. 

“He’s not…you know what? Never mind”. 

Liam shrugged, looking away from Zayn. 

“Don’t look so shocked Liam, it’s not like doesn’t do the same thing every time you two have a fight or something”. 

“You’re trying to educate me about him? You Zayn?”

“Yes, me. Because unlike you, I can see fucking through him and I know what he’s like”. 

“Sure you do”. 

“Don’t start Liam. You know where conversations on this topic go and I honestly think it’s getting old”. 

“Gotta go. Thanks for the cig”. 

Zayn grabbed his arm. 

“They left together. At 1AM. Don’t be an idiot Liam, because we both know you can do a lot better than this”. 

Liam didn’t answer. Not like Zayn expected him to. He got into his car without a word, driving away probably too quickly. 

James stormed into the café a few minutes after 9AM, when Harry was just about to sit down for a bit with Stella. He wasn’t exactly tired, he spent his day off doing absolutely nothing, except napping all day, ordering Chinese and watching SpongeBob on TV. 

“Harry, can you drive a van?”

James asked, apparently in a rush.

The boy raised his eyebrow, swallowing down bite of salted caramel muffin.

“Yeah, why?”

“Terrific. I wouldn’t ask you, but we have a bit of an emergency. Oliver was supposed to do the delivery as usual, but he’s been feeling sick since last night. I’m afraid he’s not able to drive right now”. 

Oliver was James’ son, who was part time working on the other shift and, also doing the delivery and transportation.

Harry brushed the crumbs off of his jeans and stood up.

“I can do that, just tell me where to go”. 

“You just saved the day Harry. Everything is already in the car, will you please take it to the local high school? I put the address in the GPS”. 

“I didn’t know you also deliver to school”.

James shook his head.

“Just occasionally. Proms, some special events, parents’ evenings…which is today, the parents’ evening. It’s not much, only some cookies and muffins, but it’s still a really good deal for us. We’ve been working with them for years, immediate payment, what else could you ask for”. 

Harry smiled. 

“Sure. Where exactly should I park? I mean, backdoors or something?”

“No, right in front of the cafeteria. I’m gonna call them right now, they will be ready for you and they’ll take the delivery inside. You don’t really have to do anything but drive there”. 

“Got it, I guess”. 

Harry said, taking the car key from James. 

“Thank you again Harry, I appreciate that”. 

The venture went pretty easily, just like James advised. Local high school was hard to overlook, it was probably the biggest building in town, surrounded by green and athletic stadium. As instructed, Harry parked in front of a huge sign saying “cafeteria”, watching four workers in white already coming outside, before he could even stop the engine. They swiftly carried all the pallets of sweet pastry inside, then signing an acceptance protocol and that was basically it. They obviously knew the routine, so there was no need for formalities. 

“Harry?”

Harry was genuinely surprised hearing his name, since he knew more or less two people in this whole town and both of them were currently stuck in the Café. He turned around, shivering a little as he spotted Liam heading out the door, wearing a crispy white button up shirt and a pair of grey pants, which were probably part of a suit. And well, it was impossible to not to notice how tight those pants were around Liam’s crotch. Just a single look could suggest the man was fairly gifted in that area. Harry had no doubt Liam’s class will be packed to the roof with horny housewives this evening. Liam was fit a most definitely not afraid to show it. 

“Hey”. 

Harry said hesitatingly. He was just about to say “Hey Liam”, then realized Liam never actually introduced himself. 

“What are you doing here?”

“Just brought some refreshment for the parents’ evening today”. 

Liam rolled his eyes. 

“If they served prosecco instead of croissants, the process would be a lot smoother”. 

Harry chuckled. 

“Sorry, no beverage from our side”. 

“Oh don’t worry about that. There is a lovely bottle in my fridge waiting for me”. 

“I guess it’ll be well deserved tonight. Aren’t you…teaching today?”

“I have a free period, just about to get some coffee. Do you wanna join me? If you have time of course”. 

Harry bit his lip. 

“Yeah. Yeah why not”. 

“Cool. I’m getting cappuccino, what do you want?” 

“I’ll get the same”. 

“Okay. Just stay there, I’ll be right back”. 

Liam was back in less than three minutes with two steaming cups in his hands. The place wasn’t too busy at this hour, since all the students had classes or sport practice. 

“How much do I owe you?”

Harry asked, accepting the paper cup from Liam. 

“Oh please. Nothing. You take care of my coffee everyday”. 

Harry swallowed a remark he’s sort of paid for that. 

“Thank you. So…it’s Liam, right?”

The other boy slapped his forehead lightly. 

“Jesus…I swear I usually have manners. Yes, I’m Liam, sorry for…making this a little awkward”. 

He blushed and Harry found that somehow cute. 

“No worries. Nice to officially meet you Liam”. 

Harry extended his hand, gently shaking Liam’s. 

“Do you mind having the coffee outside? It’s so nice today. Or we can go to my office, it’s up to you”. 

“Let’s stay outside. Maybe you could show me around a little bit. I basically knew only my apartment, my workplace, the gas station and newly, the mall”. 

“Well, that’s pretty much about it in here”.

Liam smirked, but took the lead. 

“I’ll walk you around the building, then we can stay at the stadium bleachers for a bit”. 

They reached the stadium after a few minutes and Harry could not notice the curious glances they were receiving as they were making their way through the students. 

“You are the popular teacher I see”. 

Harry said casually, taking sip of his coffee, looking at the football team practice with one eye.

Liam smiled. 

“Here’s the thing. When you’re not 65 plus years old, those kids are curious about your life. It’s somehow…interesting for them. It used to make me uncomfortable at first, but I got used to it”. 

“It must be quite tough to be under this microscope”. 

Harry nodded towards a couple of giggling girls, just a few meters from them. 

“Yeah. But you learn to ignore it with time. I need to keep my authority, even though it’s not easy, because I’m closer to the kids than any other teacher here. I mean age wise. Anyway…where are you from?”

“London. Born and raised”. 

“Really? What brings a proper Londoner to this town?”

The boy clutched his cappuccino. He didn’t think he was ready to share his story with basically a stranger, no matter comfortable he felt around Liam. 

“It’s a long story. Let’s say I was seeking a brand new start”. 

Thankfully, Liam was intelligent enough to take the hint. 

“I bet. I think it also requires something stronger than this”. 

He pointed at his coffee, making Harry chuckle slightly. 

“You’re right. It might sound weird, but I like this place. It’s not like London, I mean…nothing is like London, you really can’t compare. But I’m happy being here”.

“I think I understand. Most people chase adventures, big city life, the whole yolo thing. I’ve never been one of these people, I like my routine, I like to go the same places all the time, I like to eat Thai food every Saturday evening…I think I’m pretty basic at heart. I’m not looking for huge things. I want to feel good and comfortable”. 

Liam leaned against the bench behind him, making Harry glance, hidden behind his sunglasses. Liam’s shirt wasn’t completely buttoned up, revealing his tanned chest with light brown hair. Harry could see his flat stomach covered by the thin white material and curve of his butt which was tightly hugged by those damn pants. 

“Is this your first job? I mean, after college”. 

Harry asked, mainly to distract himself from staring at Liam’s generous package between his slightly spread legs. 

“Yes, I got quite lucky back then. The former teacher retired, and they were looking for someone young to refresh the staff. I just graduated, not really experienced at all, but I was a straight A student and passionate about the job. I know it sounds lame”. 

“I think it’s pretty cool you always knew what you wanted to do. I graduated in literature, but I’ve been kind of struggling since then”. 

“You graduated in literature? How come you’re working at coffee shop? No offense, Jesus, but…you could do a completely different job, closer to your focus”. 

Harry shrugged. 

“Moving here was a last minute thing. I really needed to get away and I accepted what was available. I think I’ll stick to this for a while”. 

Liam smiled. 

“Every town needs his mysterious stranger”. 

They both turned their heads as they heard a loud whistle, which announced the end of the football practice. Harry didn’t pay much attention to them, but as the players were getting off the field, he could see one of them was looking their way very fixedly. It was some teenage boy, pretty, even from the distance. He had naturally sun kissed skin and light brown hair, tamed back by thin black elastic headband. 

Liam looked at the screen of his phone. 

“I think I need to get back”. 

Harry nodded. 

“Sure”. 

He stood up, stumbling slightly, but Liam caught his arm firmly. 

“Careful. Those benches have been there since forever”. 

“Thanks”. 

Harry said, following Liam towards the exit of the stadium. He turned around one more time, somehow feeling a gaze on him. The teenage boy was staring right at him and the look wasn’t nice.


	8. Chapter 8

Stretching his arms, Liam glanced at his watch. He had 20 minutes left before he had to get to the class and greet the parents. Not like he exactly hated those meetings, but he definitely could imagine some more amusing ways to spend the evening. He was snacking on some protein bar when the door of his office flew open. He raised his eyebrow as he spotted Louis, wearing his football team hoodie and a pair of sweats. 

“Excuse me? I don’t think I heard you knocking”. 

“I didn’t”. 

Louis said, which only made Liam’s blood boiling. 

“You are not allowed to enter teacher’s office without being prompted. Do it again and I’ll give you detention, consider this as the first and the final warning.”

Louis shook his head. 

“Are you being serious?”

“Dead serious”. 

“What, are you afraid I would walk on you bending your new little boyfriend over the table?”

Liam blinked. 

“What?”

“Don’t play fucking dumb, how long have you been seeing him?”

“What the actual fuck are talking about Louis?”

“I guess you didn’t meet him just yesterday since you’re already parading him all over the school”. 

He spat and Liam eventually got some sort of a clue. 

“Wha…you mean Harry?”

“I don’t know what the hell his name is. Tell me Liam, have you been fucking both of us? At the same time? Having me in the morning then screwing him after work?”

“You’re talking nonsense, Harry is not my boyfriend”. 

“What is he then? Another fucktoy for you as I was? Just with the difference you have no problem going public with him”. 

“Are you insane? You were not a fucktoy, you know damn well I cared about you, but I’m not gonna go again over the reasons we couldn’t go public, because I already told you a thousand times. You’re not willing to understand, there’s nothing more I can do”. 

“You cared about me? Funny it took you just two days to get yourself a new slut”. 

“Enough. You have no fucking right talking about Harry like that, especially since he has absolutely nothing to do with us! I’m not sleeping with him, okay? He works at the café I go to and he was delivering some stuff for the parents’ evening today. I bumped into him and we grabbed a coffee. Not like any of this was your business, but that is it, if you’re so desperate to know”. 

“You want me to believe he is just being a friend with you?”

“I honestly don’t care what you believe or not”. 

“Oh come on Liam, don’t play naive. You know damn well everyone is just waiting for a chance to get into your pants, he’ll be spreading legs for you in no time”. 

Liam stepped closer to the boy, crossing his arms over his wide chest. 

“So? Why is that a problem?”

He was mostly kidding, but he wanted to challenge Louis a little. The boy snorted.

“So you do find him attractive. Can’t see why, just lanky and pale with no ass”. 

“Listen to me. You might have a nice big ass, yet half of the football team knows how it’s like to be inside of it”. 

Louis gasped. 

“What the fuck Liam?”

“Quit this bullshit Louis. I know you pull out for the guys on the team, when horny, drunk or just attention hungry. I’m not judging you, you’re young, you can do whatever you want and I’m quite sure this is just a high school whim. But you need to stop acting like you’re above others just because you’re attractive and have a good body. Trust me, with some age, those aspects won’t be a priority anymore”. 

“Oh yeah? How come you have let’s say some age, yet you were still fucking me shamelessly every time you got a chance? You didn’t care if I’m haughty or not, as long as I let you fuck me whenever you wanted. What a hypocrite you are”. 

Liam exhaled. 

“This is not going anywhere. You’re just twisting my words so you could prove yourself right. There’s no point of this fight. Just mind your own business and I will mind mine and we will be just fine”. 

He grabbed his glasses from the table. 

“Please leave now”. 

Niall could tell Harry was drunk when he texted him that night. He didn’t have to be mind reader to know that Harry wouldn’t start a conversation with him just like that, out of nowhere. He was aware of the fact it wasn’t ideal, but he didn’t mind at this point. Harry agreed he could come to visit him and that was what mattered to Niall right now. The morning after their little chat, he was kind of afraid Harry will back off once sober, but surprisingly, he didn’t. It was Friday morning, gloomy and grey in London, but Niall couldn’t care less. He was going to see Harry, he almost couldn’t believe it. He dug a fork into his avocado toast with egg benedict, sipping on cappuccino in one of bistros just around the corner near his apartment. It was his first day off after a very long time, it nearly felt surreal to not eat breakfast while writing an email. He decided to pack right after the meal, not like he was about to take much with him, the plan was to stay until Sunday morning and he believed it was not necessary to pack suits or something like that. In the back of his head he was slightly regretting not really working out at all lately, mainly due to his busy schedule, but also a bit of laziness. He was pretty positive there won’t be an opportunity for taking his clothes off, yet still he wanted to look good for Harry. 

Harry was unusually quite during his Friday shift. He was terribly unsure about Niall’s upcoming arrival and he bit his lip every time he looked at the watch. 

“What’s wrong?”

Stella asked, closing the dishwasher shortly before the end of their work. 

Harry shook his head. 

“Nothing really. It’s just…my ex-boyfriend is coming over for a weekend”. 

The girl raised her eyebrow.

“Are you guys getting back together of something?”

“No, we’re not. We’re on…good terms, and he wanted to see where I live, how the town looks like and so”. 

“You don’t seem too excited though”. 

“I’m just a bit afraid he will get it wrong. I don’t wanna trouble him by giving him a false hope”. 

“Well, you might have considered this before you told him he could come. I mean…you know he’s not over you, I honestly think he sees it as an opportunity to get you back”. 

Harry threw his head back. 

“That’s exactly what I wanted to avoid”. 

“Would you rather invite Liam over?” 

Stella smirked. 

“What?”

“Disadvantages of a small town, Harry, get used to it. You probably haven’t heard the latest gossip about some hot guy with curly hair, visiting Liam at his work”. 

Harry rubbed his eyes. 

“For real? People here have way too much time on their hands”. 

“I personally think you two would look great together. Well, the only one equally hot would be Zayn but…that’s off the table”. 

Harry tilted his head. 

“Zayn?”

“Yeah…just one guy”. 

Stella waved her hand, before she went to grab her purse. 

It was a little after 5PM when Niall’s white Lexus stopped in front of Harry’s apartment building. He sent Harry a quick text he’s here, getting out of the car to get his bag from the truck. He looked around, taking off his sunglasses. The town seemed quite nice, small of course, but nice. He wasn’t sure he could imagine actually living there, yet it was probably pretty safe a peaceful place. He shivered when he spotted Harry’s tall figure walking out the door. 

“Hey”.

He said with a little weak voice. 

“Hey”. 

Harry answered, seemingly as nervous as Niall himself. 

“How was the drive?”

“It was alright, the traffic wasn’t too bad”. 

“Well…let’s go upstairs I guess”. 

Harry nodded towards the door, clutching keys in his hand. He watched Niall locking his car with a beep and picking up his black leather bag. He looked good. He grew quite prominent light beard, and his hair was a bit longer, slicked back. He was wearing white button up shirt with sleeves rolled around his elbows and a pair of light washed jeans. He almost looked more manly than Harry remembered him, probably putting on a little weight, but it suited him. Harry took the lead until they stepped into his apartment. Thankfully, he hasn’t been there long enough to make an actual mess, so he didn’t have to clean up like crazy before Niall’s arrival. 

“It’s really nice”. 

The blonde said, putting his bag on the floor. 

“It’s small. But cozy”. 

“It definitely is. I mean, it’s totally enough for one person”. 

“Says someone who lives in a two - bedroom apartment in Chelsea”. 

Niall smiled, ignoring the remark.

“I like the style. The mismatched furniture, it looks amazing”. 

“Thanks”. 

“Where these door lead to?”

“This one’s bathroom, this one’s closet”. 

“May I?”

Niall asked, hand on a handle of the closet door. 

“Sure”. 

“Wow. You finally got your walk-in closet. It bet this it your favorite part of this place”. 

Harry smiled softly. 

“I put quite some effort organizing it”. 

“I can imagine. By the way, I brought you couple bottles of the prosecco you like. It’s in the car, I almost forgot about it”. 

“You didn’t have to bring me anything”. 

Harry bit his lip, but eventually went downstairs with Niall to pick up the beverage. It turned out by “couple bottles”, Niall meant two wholesale boxes, 5 bottles each. 

“Niall, this is way too many”.

“Come on Haz, we lived together, remember? You used to buy these like water bottles”. 

“Fair enough…but let me at least pay you for it”. 

“Nonsense. It’s not a big deal Harry, Jesus, it’s not Dom Perignon”. 

Once they got back to the apartment, Harry opened the kitchen cabinet, reaching for two prosecco glasses. He definitely felt like having a drink right now. In fact, it wasn’t that bad seeing Niall, yet he still felt stiff. 

“You want some ice in it?”

Niall nodded. 

“Yeah, it’s not exactly cold after the journey”. 

They took their drinks to the living room and the first bottle was gone in no time. They both loosened up after a few sips and there was surprisingly a lot they had to say. Niall was talking about his job, his promotion, about equipping his new apartment, adding some stories about his close colleagues. Harry basically talked about the same things. His new job, apartment, life in this town. They were talking for almost two hours, finishing their second bottle and it honestly felt so good, being around someone who knows you so well. It was comfortable. Just as Harry remembered. 

“So”. 

Harry said as he took another sip from his glass. 

“You didn’t really go out with that Luke boy?”

In the middle of their conversation, Niall briefly mentioned meeting Luke. 

“No. Didn’t feel like it”. 

“As a fitness trainer, he must have been good looking”. 

Niall shrugged. 

“Yeah but…as I said, wasn’t feeling it”. 

The boy looked over Harry’s shoulder. 

“Wow, the sunset is freaking gorgeous here”. 

“It is. Come on, let’s see”. 

Harry said before they stood up, as he completely opened the curtains in the living room. It really was magical. Golden and red, all bright and warm. Harry noticed just recently, how amazing the sunsets are from this place. 

“So beautiful”. 

The blonde said and Harry, who was standing behind him just nodded. 

Suddenly, Niall turned around, facing Harry. They were looking at each other quietly, faces a little heated from the evening sun. Niall extended his hand slowly, expecting Harry to flinch, but he didn’t. Harry honestly wasn’t thinking much now, he was slightly confused and a little drunk. The blonde cupped his face gently, pulling him closer, kissing him softly.


	9. Chapter 9

Harry wanted to turn away, but somehow, he was stuck. He closed his eyes as he felt Niall’s lips on his own, way too gentle, apparently testing the waters. It was like he was waiting for Harry to quit, like he was giving him a chance to stop whatever was going on. The kiss got deeper as Niall felt no resistance, kissing Harry with full force now. He wrapped his hand around his waist and pulled him closer, holding him tightly while slipping his tongue into Harry’s warm mouth. The curly boy gasped a little, yet he didn’t back off. His body loosened up a bit as he gave in, kissing Niall back with an equal amount of passion. The blonde took his lower lip between his teeth, tugging on it gently, then soothing it with his wet tongue. Harry could feel Niall’s hands wandering underneath his shirt, touching his bare back, sending shivers through his spine. It was pretty much the moment Harry said to himself “fuck it”, grabbing Niall’s face with one hand, deepening the kiss, licking heatedly into his mouth. He didn’t know how many minutes of horny kissing passed, when he realized Niall was saying something. 

“What?”

He asked, breaking the embrace. 

“Bed?”

The blonde whispered almost inaudibly. Harry bit his lip. This, this was the last chance to stop and keep their relationship on somehow mature and reasonable level. 

“Yeah. Come on”. 

Harry answered, leading the boy to the bedroom area. It was half dark there, which actually created the perfect intimate atmosphere. Niall pushed him onto the bed, hovering over him in a second, already unbuttoning his crispy white shirt. Once he was done, he kissed Harry deeply and the boy couldn’t help but pulling the shirt down his shoulder and back, revealing his arms and chest. He always loved Niall’s chest, covered with thick light brown hair. He’s never been into that with other guys, but with Niall, it was a big turn on. He squeezed his nipples gently, rubbing them lightly between his fingers. He threw his head back with a shameless moan when Niall pressed his knee between his legs, immediately feeling Harry’s erection on his thigh. He smiled cunningly, pressing harder against Harry’s crotch. 

“Already so hard for me”. 

He whispered into Harry’s ear, licking over the sensitive shell. 

“You must be so horny baby”. 

He continued, but Harry honestly didn’t listen much, his mind only focused on his fully erected cock, crammed in his too tight pants. He bucked his hips up, desperately needed to get his penis out of the damn trousers. The blonde got the hint and reached between them, unzipping Harry’s jeans. He didn’t take them off, or the underwear, he simply sneaked his hand underneath the black boxers and took Harry’s cock out. It was all swollen and leaking from the red tip. Niall gently ran his thumb over the sensitive slit, which spontaneously opened just to gush out more pre-come. Harry whined as the boy started jerking him off. He knew exactly what he was doing, completely aware of everything which was making Harry feel good. Putting more pressure onto the tip, he cupped Harry’s heavy balls with the other hand, making the boy almost come on the spot. 

“Do we need a condom baby?”

He asked softly, keep jerking his cock, using the sticky precum as lube. Harry shook his head. 

“Are you sure baby? No rubber?”

“No…I…shit…you know I hate rubber”. 

“Yeah, I know baby. You never let me use a condom even once during all those years. But, have you…have you been with someone else lately? You know I’d have to put on a rubber if you were”. 

Harry looked at him, eyes glassy with lust. 

“I haven’t been with anyone”. 

Which was perfectly enough for Niall, who leaned down and kissed him sloppily, undoing his own jeans. 

“Missed you so much Haz”. 

He breathed out, taking his pants off completely. He sat back on his heels, undressing Harry as well as the other boy was staring at his obscenely tented white boxers. He handed the blonde a bottle of lube, already feeling Niall’s palms on his knees, spreading them apart. 

“Come on babe, spread your legs”. 

Niall encouraged him, until he finally opened his thighs and revealed his little pink hole. He turned his face away as the other boy started lightly massaging the tight entrance, making it properly wet with the lubricant. Harry arched his back the moment pressed a little harder, slipping one wet finger inside the heat. 

“Shit”. 

Harry moaned, pushing against the digit without even realizing it. 

“Like it baby?”

Niall asked, fucking the boy with the single finger with more force. Harry’s legs were wide apart, his cock hot and heavy on his stomach. 

“Gonna come”. 

He cried out, but Niall grabbed his penis and squeezed the base firmly, delaying his orgasm. 

“Shh, not yet baby. Want you to come on my cock”. 

He added another finger, scissoring them open while still preventing Harry from cumming. He knew Harry loved being fingered and he came just on his fingers so many times. The boy’s stubborn hole was slowly opening, all wet and inviting. Just looking at it, he almost cum himself. Biting his lip, she quickly added third finger and let go of Harry’s cock. He was fingering him roughly until his penis was fully erected again, leaking on Harry’s soft tummy. He grabbed his own dick, lining up with Harry’s stretched opening. He couldn’t believe he was just about to fuck Harry again. Without further thinking, he pushed forward, entering the boy on one go. Harry screamed as he clenched the sheets, suddenly feeling too full. Niall had 9 inch cock, nicely meaty and slightly curved. It was just the perfect size for Harry’s ass, he liked cocks on the bigger side, yet not too huge. They were kissing messily as Niall was ramming into him, hard fast. The blonde couldn’t take it. Harry’s hole was warm and slippery, and he hasn’t had sex for way too long. 

“I’m not gonna last”. 

He said after less than three minutes, cheeks blushing with embarrassment. 

“Just a little longer”. 

“I can’t Haz, fuck, you’re so perfect. Need to come, need to come inside you”. 

Harry grabbed his bare ass and pressed him even deeper inside him, bucking his hips up so the blonde could rub against his prostate. 

“There, fuck”. 

Harry cried out, pushing himself furiously onto Niall’s cock. The boy understood, jabbing roughly into the same spot, making Harry cream in pleasure until he squirted thick white ropes all over his belly. Niall was following him in a second, finally emptying himself deep inside Harry, filling him up with a generous load of warm, sticky semen. 

The reality hit Harry the very second Niall rolled over onto his back, breathing heavily. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. He wanted to cover his face and scream, yet he opted for excusing himself to the bathroom. Shit, he didn’t even want to look at himself in the mirror. He splashed cold water all over his face, slicking back his wild curls with wet palms. How could he possibly fuck up so much? Well, he expected some issues over the weekend, but he most definitely didn’t expect to have sex with Niall 2 seconds after his arrival! What a damn idiot he was. He decided to take quick shower, mostly because he was all sweaty and sticky, but also to avoid Niall a few minutes longer. He wrapped a white towel around his waist, assuming he couldn’t hide in the bathroom forever. He walked out hesitatingly, finding Niall on a couch in the living room, drinking some soda, phone in his hand.

“Hey”. 

He smiled at him and Harry felt even worse. Niall looked happy. Innocent. 

“Hey. Uhm…the bathroom is free, it you’d want”. 

“Yeah, I guess I could do bit of a refresh”. 

He stood up, wearing only a pair of underwear. He placed a butterfly kiss on Harry’s shoulder as he was passing by him. 

“Sorry I finished so fast. It’s…been a while”. 

Harry shivered. 

“That’s okay”. 

“I’ll make it up to you”. 

He added and Harry bit his lip so hard he almost tasted blood. 

“Let’s go for a dinner”. 

The blonde said, drying his chest with a fresh towel. Harry actually wasn’t against this idea, he was pretty hungry and he probably needed another drink to stop beating himself up for sleeping with Niall. 

“Alright. Do you have something on mind?”

“I checked the internet, well not exactly Michelin starred places, but there’s a restaurant slash bar, Mexican/Spanish kinda style, seems quite cool”. 

Harry shrugged. 

“Sure, why not”. 

They left the apartment shortly after 9PM and Harry had to admit Niall looked really good in his black pants and black tight button up shirt. He looked quite posh, hair back, polished elegant shoes with no socks, fine lather bracelet around his wrist. Harry smiled a bit. He could remember this boy running around uni, wearing a flannel shirt and an old pair of Nikes, his hair dyed peroxide blonde. And there he was. A decent grown up man, successful lawyer, handsome and elegant. 

“I’m proud of you”. 

Harry suddenly said, making Niall turn to him when they were just opening the restaurant door. 

“You’re proud of me?”

“Yeah. Look at you. Doing what you’ve ever wanted to do and being great at it. You have your life sorted out”. 

Niall smiled softly as he reached for Harry’s hand, laced their fingers, and placed a kiss on his wrist. Harry was a little shaken from such a sweet gesture he almost walked into a guy who was carrying two Margaritas in his hands. 

“Careful there”. 

He said and fuck, Harry knew that voice. He also knew those dark eyes with ridiculously long lashes and the strong spicy perfume. 

“Table for two?” 

He asked and Niall apparently understood the situation a lot faster than Harry, figuring out the boy was working here. 

“Yes please”. 

“Over there, by the window. Why don’t you take a seat with your boyfriend and I’ll be right with you?”

He asked, mocking a little bit, which Niall naturally didn’t catch. 

“Thank you very much”. 

They sat down and Harry couldn’t stop staring at Zayn, who placed the cocktails on a table of very cheerful group in the corner, then taking a tequila shot with them. He whipped his mouth with a back of his hand and laughed at some joke, before eventually left the loud crew. He was wearing light washed ripped jeans and simple black shirt today, couple bracelets clinking on his wrists. He seemed well known here, once he came back to the bar, he greeted with some guys who just walked in. Harry had to laugh desperately inside his head. He was craving to know more about this mysterious exotic boy, here were the answers. And he just fucking had to get to know them the exact moment Niall was kissing his damn hand. He just realized none of them corrected him when he called them boyfriends, for the fuck’s sake. 

His throat clenched as he saw Zayn walking towards their table.


	10. Chapter 10

The dinner went surprisingly peacefully. If Harry thought Zayn would pay them any extra attention, he was damn wrong. The boy only served them their drinks, then let his colleague to take care of their food and eventual additional requests. As far as Harry could tell, Zayn was the type of person who was being familiar yet keeping his healthy distance. He discussed various stuff with the guests he knew and was very empathetic about it, but never really told anything too personal about himself. Harry respected this strategy, because at some point of his life, he found out the less people know, the better. He stopped checking on Zayn after a while. It was useless and somehow rude to Niall. Even though they were not together, he didn’t want to hurt Niall’s feelings any further. He was so caught up in his thoughts he didn’t even realized the blonde was talking to him. 

“Sorry, what?”

He turned to Niall, who was just finishing his enchilada. 

“I was asking if you wanna go to a bar? Or something like that. For couple more drinks”. 

Harry tilted his head. 

“Would you mind if we just went home? I’m honestly too full and comfy to hang out at a bar”. 

Niall shrugged. 

“Sure. I was pretty much asking because of you. You know I’m not exactly a party person”. 

“Yeah. I’m good, really. We can watch some Netflix in bed”. 

The blonde smiled at him softly. 

“That sounds good”. 

Niall eventually paid, after a short argument during which Harry suggested they should at least split the check. 

“Don’t worry about it, Harry, seriously. I’m doing good at work and I can’t complain about money lately. Please, let it go”. 

Harry was about to say it’s not about the money, but more importantly about the fact they’re not a couple and Niall simply doesn’t have to cover for Harry’s half as well. In the end he decided to drop it, because it didn’t feel like the best idea to discuss this topic in the middle of a packed restaurant. He couldn’t help it but looked at Zayn when they were leaving. Their eyes met for a split second and Harry’s heart sped up a bit, at the feeling of Zayn looking back at him. Wow, like a proper 16 years old. He couldn’t actually believe his stupid excitement. Genuinely, he wasn’t special enough to impress someone like Zayn. The boy was so unique himself he couldn’t imagine anyone to match it. Maybe Liam could match it. Wasn’t it what Stella said? That Liam would make a great couple with Zayn? Yeah, Liam was handsome, intelligent, and rich. Perfectly suitable partner. He glanced at Zayn one last time and kind of regret it, when he spotted some young guy leaning across the bar to whisper something in Zayn’s ear, which definitely wasn’t a drink order. Zayn pushed him away gently after few seconds but laughing along with him. Harry bowed his head as he followed Niall outside. 

They were a lot more worn off than they expected, especially once they threw blankets over themselves and tugged into them snuggly. They watched a few old episodes of Friends and it brought Niall so many memories. Harry always watched Friends when he didn’t want to think much and sought for a comfort and good vibes. It was a safe bet, a feel good choice. He knew all the lines like the back of his hand, yet he still laughed at the jokes like he heard them for the first time and Niall found that so adorable. He would do anything to see Harry like this every day. All calm and slowly getting asleep, in the light of the laptop screen. 

Harry woke up few minutes after 9:30 and to an empty bed. He rubbed his eyes as he walked into the kitchen, spotting the blonde in a grey tracksuit. 

“Morning”. 

He said, watching Niall who was standing at the kitchen counter. 

“Morning. Do you want coffee?”

“I do. But I can make my own…what’s all this?”

Harry asked, staring at the dining table full of food and plates. 

“Breakfast”. 

Niall said simply. 

“I wasn’t sure if you’d like eggs or pancakes, so I made both”. 

“You absolutely don’t have to do this Niall, like…this is really not necessary”. 

“No big deal, I like to cook, you know. I miss cooking for you”. 

Niall smiled and he looked actually so happy it almost physically hurt Harry. 

“Well…thank you. It smells divine”. 

“Dig in, there’s plenty of it”. 

They spent almost two hours sitting there, drinking coffee, eating, talking. Communication was never a problem between them, they had similar opinions and always a lot to say, it almost felt like the old times. 

“How’s your mum doing?”

Niall said, finishing his last cup of coffee. 

Harry shrugged. 

“We actually haven’t been talking much lately”. 

“You need to give her some time”. 

“I know she’s still mad at me for leaving her alone after what happened to Gemma. But…seeing her crying and grieving all the time was one of the reasons I had to getaway. I’m a fucking coward I know that. But I swear I would go insane if I stayed”.

“The timing wasn’t the best, but I get you did what you had to do. Doesn’t mean you’re a coward, everyone deals with those things differently. There’s no certain way how to get over such a tragedy, or the right amount of time to do so. Your mum doesn’t blame you, she’s just sad”. 

“Yeah, I guess you’re right”. 

“But call her, please. She might doesn’t say, but obviously she misses you a lot. You only have each other now, you need to stay in touch”. 

“I honestly feel like I am alone in this. It’s hard for both of us, but I truly expected her to be a little more supportive”. 

Niall took Harry’s hand gently. 

“You’re not alone Harry, I’m always there. You can count on me, please keep that in mind”. 

“Why?”

“What do you mean?”

“Why are you being so nice to me? I mean…I wasn’t an amazing boyfriend even at my best days”. 

“You were amazing to me. You still are Harry. You know very well how much I still care”. 

Harry opened his mouth to say something, but Niall stopped him. 

“Shh. Don’t say anything”. 

He kissed Harry’s hand softly, just butterfly kisses. This innocent act was so gentle it immediately made it intimate. They kissed. And Harry hated himself, because this was exactly the opposite of what he should have been doing, but it was so easy with Niall to get lost in the moment and leave the regrets for later. Niall had a huge advantage compared to everyone else – he knew Harry better than he knew himself. He knew exactly what to do and what to say to turn him on, to get him where he wanted him. Yeah, it didn’t work over the phone, it was simple to hang up, but the actual physical contact was completely different story. It was basic. He wanted it. He wanted sex with Niall, because Niall knew how to make it good for him, he knew how to make him scream. He missed the intimacy, he was thirsty for some touch, for some affection. He wasn’t proud of himself when he was riding Niall’s cock in less than ten minutes later. The blonde was sitting on a couch, Harry bouncing on his lap hard, whining at the feeling of the tip of Niall’s cock jabbing into his prostate every time he impaled himself deeply. The blonde was whispering something into their kiss, but Harry didn’t listen. He was so caught in bliss he didn’t have the capacity for anything else. He knew this will only confirm the boy’s false hopes, yet it didn’t stop him. None of them lasted long, both too needy after such a long time without sex. Niall came inside him, and Harry cried out at the feeling of thick warm ropes of semen filling him up, as he emptied himself between their bellies. It was so intense he actually needed a couple of minutes of steady breathing to put himself together. 

“You can hit the shower first”. 

Niall eventually said and Harry considered that as a good idea. When he came back, he found Niall going through the pockets of his pants and blazer. 

“Are you looking for something?”

He asked, drying his wet hair with a towel. 

“Yeah, my glasses. I must have left them at the restaurant”. 

“Are you sure? Maybe you left them in a car?”

The blonde shook his head. 

“No, I put them on to read the menu last night. But it’s not a big deal, they were quite basic”. 

“Nonsense. We’re going to the town anyway, we’ll stop by at the restaurant, I’m sure they found them”. 

“Okay, but as I said, it’s not a tragedy”. 

It was roughly after lunch time when they got ready, but they were still quite full, from the breakfast, so they didn’t rush much. 

“Should I take a car, or will we walk?”

Niall asked, putting on a white hoodie and a pair of light washed jeans, which was the most casual Harry saw him in a very long time. Except the clothes he was wearing at home. 

“We can park in the center and walk around then”. 

Once they reached the restaurant from yesterday, Niall had to take a quick phone call, so it was on Harry to go check the glasses situation. He looked at the board next to the main entrance, then at the screen of his phone. On Saturdays, they open at 2PM, 20 minutes from now. Harry chewed on his inner cheeks. He didn’t fancy the idea of waiting there in a car for almost half an hour. He decided to give it a shot, there was usually some of the staff present at most restaurants before opening, to get the place ready. The door wasn’t locked, which was a good sign. He walked in, looking around hesitatingly. 

“We’re closed”. 

He almost jumped as he heard a firm voice, coming somewhere from above. What the hell? He was utterly confused. Eventually, he noticed quite inconspicuous stairs, just in the very corner, few meters from the main door. The darkness in the aisle was making it almost invisible. He finally saw Zayn, walking down the stairs, dressed in some black hoodie and matching sweats. His hair was messy, and he sort of looked like he just woke up, which Harry didn’t understand, since he was already at the restaurant. Not like he ever experienced Zayn in a particularly cheerful mood, but he seemed extremely grumpy today. 

“I said we’re closed”. 

He snapped again, throwing his phone on the bar counter, stepping behind it, turning on a coffee machine. 

Harry swallowed thickly. 

“I know, I’m just….”

“Did you call me the Uber?”

A voice from up the stairs interrupted the sentence and Harry raised his eyebrow. What the fuck was upstairs? A room or something? A storeroom? 

“I did. He’ll be there in five”. 

Zayn yelled back, pouring a bit of milk into his cup. 

“What do you want?”

He raised his head, looking right at Harry. 

“My…friend, probably left a pair of reading glasses here last night. We were there for a dinn…”. 

“I remember you and your boyfriend”. 

Zayn said, not moving from his spot, making Harry actually uncomfortable. 

“Right... I was wondering if you found them”. 

To his surprise, Zayn bent down to open some cabinet.

“I did find them”. 

He took a few steps towards Harry, extending his hand. 

“There you go”. 

Before Harry could even say thank you, the third person was coming down the stairs, which automatically made them both turn heads. 

“Did you make a coffee for me too?” 

The boy said casually but froze a little when he realized they were not alone. Harry could recognize this boy. As strange as it sounded, he met him twice. It was the very same boy who was leaning across the bar yesterday to flirt with Zayn and it was also the same boy who gave him those nasty looks across the football field, when he was having a coffee with Liam at the local high. Wow. The boy was a student, a kid, basically. Even though he was apparently hungovered and tired, he was still pretty. He looked at Zayn and he didn’t have to be a mind reader to know he’s not too happy about this current setup. 

“Anything else I can do for you?”

Zayn said, politely asking Harry to get the fuck out now. 

“That’s it. Thank you very much for the glasses, I appreciate that”. 

“You’re welcome”.


	11. Chapter 11

The afternoon was actually quite nice. Well, Niall has always been a good company, to be fair. They had lunch at tiny burger bistro and the food was surprisingly divine. They grabbed a coffee to go on the way, as they were walking through the town, quickly stopping at Harry’s workplace. Niall had to admit the town was kind of cute, it was very calm and peaceful, but there were also very cool places and lovely restaurants and cafes. 

“I feel like I’m on set of Gilmore Girls”. 

The blonde said, sitting down on a bench in small park next to the town hall. 

Harry smiled. 

“That’s actually pretty accurate”. 

“I like it though, it’s a nice place”. 

“Not for a bad ass lawyer like you”. 

Niall chuckled. 

“Yeah. It wouldn’t work for me work wise, but I could imagine spending there some free time”. 

Harry looked at him. 

“You’re welcome for sure. Anytime you feel like having a break from the city”. 

The blonde clutched the paper cup in his hands, which was slowly getting cold. 

“I sort of thought we could make this a regular thing”. 

Harry bit his lip. 

“What exactly do you mean by that?”

“I…I don’t know, maybe I could come for your free weekends? Or maybe even on the workdays, like Fridays maybe? I guess I could bring my laptop and do the paper work here instead of the office, we usually don’t have meetings on Friday. That would make three days, it’s not that bad”. 

“Look, Niall…I really, really care for your and I think you’re absolutely amazing, but I don’t think this is what I want right now”. 

“I thought we were doing good. Like…aren’t we? I mean, you slept with me Harry, two times actually. Why would you do that if you didn’t want this? If you didn’t want us”. 

Harry sighed. The blonde was apparently getting upset and Harry knew this situation was about to come, but fuck, he still didn’t know what to say. 

“I wanted it, of course I did. And it was great, you were great, I was into it as much as you were, probably even more”. 

“Then what’s the problem? I’m not asking anything from you Harry, I’m offering to make all the compromises from my side. I will make time for you, I will make the arrangements at work, I will work late to get things done sooner…I really wanna give this a try Harry. Don’t you see we’re good together? We always talk, we always laugh, we have so many things in common. I get it you didn’t want to live in London anymore and I get you didn’t want a long distance relationship and it’s reasonable, but…don’t you think it’s worth a shot?”

“I…I’m sorry Niall. I’m so sorry I can’t give you what you want”. 

“But why?”

The blonde stood up, nearly shouting. 

“Why can’t you do it since I’m offering you to do all the work?”

“Because I need some time on my own. Just…being alone, you know? Don’t get me wrong, I still love you, somehow, but I don’t feel like being in a relationship now”. 

“So it was just sex? That’s what you’re trying to tell me here?”

“No, no it wasn’t just sex…how…how can you tell that”. 

“Because that’s exactly how it looks like Harry! You just used me”. 

“What? Are you even being serious?”

“What should I be thinking Harry? Everything was good, we fucked, now you’re telling me you actually don’t feel like being in a relationship”. 

“It’s true. I don’t mean it in a bad way, but I didn’t think it’d be a big deal if we slept together, like, we did it a thousand times”. 

Niall shook his head. 

“I get it. No big deal. Just a convenient visit, have me around to give you what you need”. 

“You’re making it sound like I fucking abused you, you enjoyed this as well Niall!”

“I didn’t know it was just that! I thought we were getting into something, something more important than just a plain fuck”. 

Harry rubbed his nose. 

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry for disappointing you. I swear on my life I never meant to hurt you Niall, you have to believe me”. 

“Guess you were just killing time with me while waiting for the damn barman to do my job eventually”. 

“What? What the hell are you talking about?”

“Come on Harry, you really think I didn’t notice you checking up on him?”

“Do you really wanna end this weekend like this?”

Niall threw his head back. 

“I don’t know what to say Harry. I honestly don’t know anything right now”. 

“Niall”. 

The curly boy said, taking his hand. 

“I fucking care about you. After my mum, you’re probably the most important person in my life and I have no idea what I would do without you, guiding me and standing beside me all those years. I want you in my life, I want to know how you are, I want to talk to you, sometimes I might even wonder what you had for lunch, but I don’t wish to retrieve our relationship just now. Please try to understand me. There is no one else behind it, I swear I’m not seeing anyone and I’m not even thinking of anyone. And yes, it was probably shitty of me to sleep with you, but you know what? I don’t regret it. Because it was fucking perfect and I know you feel the same way”. 

The blonde sat back down, blankly staring forward.

“I do feel the same way. But on top of that, I love you Harry. Jesus, I never stopped loving you. You’re on my mind 24/7 and it drives me insane, knowing there is nothing I can do to make you love me back”. 

Harry had to blink to urge back the single tear. 

“I love you back more than anyone in my life. I know it’s not enough for you but…it’s all can give you right now”. 

They walked to the car in quiet. In actually wasn’t the awkward silence, it was just…quiet. Harry was about to open the passenger door once they parked in front of his flat when Niall spoke up.

“I understand if you want me to leave”. 

Harry pushed his curls back, turning to the blonde. 

“I want you to stay”. 

“Liam, good to see you man”. 

“What is this, your new uniform?”

Liam said, pointing at Zayn’s black tracksuit and a pair of white trainers. 

The tanned boy rolled his eyes. 

“Sorry, I would have dressed up if I knew you were coming”. 

Liam smirked, getting as comfortable as possible on the tall bar chair. He was wearing a leather jacket and a pair of black chino pants. 

“I’ll get margarita”. 

He said, pulling phone out of his pocket. 

“Sure. Solo tonight?”

“No, the guys will come in like thirty minutes. Was ready early and didn’t want to wait at home”. 

“One wild night ahead of you I see”. 

“Well, you look like you already had one”. 

“What makes you think so?”

“You’re wearing a fucking tracksuit and hair in a bun”. 

“Yeah, because I can”. 

Zayn blinked at him, finishing the making of his drink. 

“Have you seen Louis lately?”

Liam asked hesitatingly, his voice a lot quieter, like he was scared someone could hear him. 

“He was there yesterday actually”. 

Liam sighed. 

“You know what? I don’t even know why I asked. It’s not my problem anymore, why should I care”. 

Zayn shrugged. 

“You were pretty into him, it’s normal you still kinda care. Even though you shouldn’t”. 

“Spare me the preach Zayn, seriously”. 

“I’m not gonna preach you. He’s a little whore, he’s always been one and both you and I know it. End of the story”. 

“Was he drunk?”

Zayn rolled his eyes once again. 

“I honestly don’t remember seeing him sober, like ever”. 

“You’re exaggerating”. 

“You’re better off without that kid Liam, trust me. Be single for a while, or find someone your age. Don’t tell me you didn’t see this coming, you knew this wouldn’t last”. 

“How you’re so sure? There are cases which made it work”. 

“Yeah, but those were probably mentally mature people, not little idiots who only seek attention. Here, this one’s on the house”. 

The tanned boy said, serving Liam another cocktail. 

“I haven’t finished this one yet”. 

“Well then hurry the fuck up, you’re literally zero fun when sober”. 

“What you wanna do tonight?”

Niall asked as he took off his hoodie and threw it over the nearest chair. He was still miserable about the situation with Harry, but he somehow wanted to savor the last hours with him and this urge was stronger. 

“We can go out or we could order some pizza and I have a really good red wine in here”. 

Harry suggested and Niall honestly didn’t feel like going out. He wanted Harry for himself, even though he knew how stupid it was. 

“I’m actually in a mood for a red”. 

Harry smiled. 

“Me too. I’ll go get it, make up your mind about the pizza in the meantime”. 

The ended up ordering capricciosa, which was Niall’s favorite and also prosciutto with extra rocket. It was the most perfect Saturday evening they could ask for. They were watching Sex Education on Netflix while drinking red wine and snacking on pizza, laughing together and bringing up some old stories they had. It felt warm. It felt comfortable. It felt good. Harry went to kitchen for the second bottle, when he stopped his movements for a moment. With the open bottle in his hand, he just stood there and stared. He was looking at Niall. The blonde was in his bed, dressed up in simple white shirt, pair of grey shorts and white socks, couple day beard and hair slicked back. He was checking his phone and sipping on his wine and fuck, Harry’s heart hurt a little. Niall was amazing. He’s never felt more comfortable with anyone in his life before, they could spend hours in complete silence and it still wouldn’t be awkward. Sometimes he had no idea why he was pushing him away. 

“Haz?”

“Yes?”

“I’m kinda running out of wine”. 

Harry laughed and finally moved from his spot. 

“We can’t let that happen”. 

Nothing happened between them that night. They felt asleep around 1:30 AM, cuddled into each other, with Netflix still on. He pulled Niall closer like he knew he won’t be able to hold him like this for a while. And he held him tight until the morning lights. 

Liam was in a good spirit that night. He was in a good mood, carefree, he was genuinely having fun. His friends joined him after two margaritas and they honestly stopped counting the tequila shots they kept ordering. Even though Zayn was occasionally sipping on his gin tonic, he refused to drink with Liam and his crew. He wasn’t exactly hungover, yet he still felt like shit after last night and he knew he wouldn’t even get properly drunk in this state. Moreover, he was working, so he had to focus at least slightly. 

“Come on Zayn, one shot won’t kill you”. 

“Give me a break, I slept for like two hours, I’m counting minutes to get the hell out of there”. 

“Who was the lucky one for a sleepover?”

Zayn shrugged. 

“No one, I just got stuck with some guys and drank too much. Not a big deal”. 

“Haven’t seen you with anyone for a while”. 

“Yeah, cause I’m not interested in seeing anyone”. 

“Don’t tell me you’re not even fucking anyone”. 

“Why? Do YOU fancy a sleepover?”

Zayn nodded towards upstairs, making Liam roll his eyes. 

“You wish”. 

The tanned boy laughed, eventually downing a shot, scrunching his face, before he went to greet some new incomers. The place was pretty packed, some people didn’t even have a seat, just hanging out around tables with drinks in their hands. Music got a bit louder with time, when most guests were down with dinner. 

Liam dipped a crunchy tortilla chip in guacamole, feeling the alcohol rushing through his head. He pulled out his phone, immediately spotting a new message on Whatsapp. It was from Louis and Liam’s throat immediately tightened. 

“What are you doing? Miss you”. 

He was just staring at the text, not even opening it. Another message popped up. 

“Miss you fucking me”. 

Liam bit his lip.


End file.
